Karnataka’s SSLC and second PUC examinations will not be postponed, School Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa said, as the state prepares to finalise schedules that overlap with the second phase of the census and other government duties assigned to teachers.
Speaking to Prajavani, Bangarappa said the period for submitting objections to the provisional examination timetable had ended and that the Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board would release the final schedule shortly. He said there was no question of postponing the examinations because any delay could disrupt the academic calendar for 2027–28.
The provisional timetable places the second PUC examinations from February 27 and the SSLC examinations from March 22. Students, parents and members of the public were allowed to submit objections to the provisional schedule until October 22. The final timetable is yet to be published.
The minister said the second phase of the census is scheduled to take place from January 25 to February 28. Reports that the examinations would be postponed because of the census were speculation, he said. Bangarappa argued that delaying the examinations would also postpone results and affect admission counselling for courses including medicine through NEET and engineering through the Common Entrance Test.
The dispute has arisen because government school teachers may be assigned to census duties as enumerators and supervisors. About 1.5 lakh teachers could be deployed for the census-related work, which may continue until the first week of March. Bangarappa said teachers had already been assigned to the special intensive revision of electoral rolls, and that the extended deployment had affected classroom learning during the 2026–27 academic year.
He said keeping teachers away from schools for another five months would make it difficult to complete the syllabus and prepare students for examinations. The minister therefore argued that the census should be postponed rather than moving the examination schedule. He also said the Centre should consider the learning and examination calendar before assigning teachers to census work.
The Directorate of Census Operations has already raised objections to the provisional SSLC and second PUC timetable and sought changes, according to the report. Bangarappa has instructed officials in the School Education Department and the examination board to write to the Centre, citing the possible impact of any timetable change on classroom teaching, the academic calendar and examination preparations, along with a relevant Supreme Court order.
The state government is expected to write to the Centre requesting that the second phase of the census be conducted after the examination period ends. Until the final timetable is issued, the provisional dates remain the schedule publicly available to students and schools.
