ISLAMABAD: Under the directions of Minister of Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mahmood, Inter Board Committee of Chairmen (IBCC) had prepared special guidelines for the students and teachers that will be adopted in the SSC and HSSC annual examinations 2021. The Education Ministry in its message said that it was the joint responsibility of the students, parents’ teachers and examination staff to ensure implementation of COVID-19 SOPs for conduction of Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) exams 2021 across the country. Sharing the SOPs details, the official source said the examination hall’s surface will be disinfected and cleaned on a regular basis to reduce the risk of infection. The students were strictly asked to keep social distance while entering the examination center. They shall also leave the examination hall one by one to prevent themselves from the risk of pandemic, they added. The sources further informed that the temperature of staff and students will be checked on the entry points of the examination hall, adding, each staff member and students must sanitize their hands before sitting in the exams. The students and parents had also been assured that only vaccinated staff will perform duties in the examination centers to ensure the safety of children. In order to provide drinking water facilities in the examination hall, the Education Ministry had ensured separate drinking glasses for each student. The government had also arranged spacious seating arrangements for students with a six feet distance between each chair at the examination centers. It has been informed that only 50 seats will be arranged in a single examination hall. It is worth mentioning here that the Federal Board had already notified for general information of all concerned that SSC PART-II Annual Examinations, 2021 shall commence with effect from Monday, 12th July,2021, and end on 30th July, 2021. However, HSSC Part-II Annual Examination, 2021 of the Federal Board of Intermediate & Secondary Education, Islamabad shall commence with effect from Saturday, 10th July, 2021 to 30th July 2021. When contacted, Chairman Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) Qaiser Alam said that more than 385,000 students of matriculation and intermediate will appear in the examinations across the country. He further informed that a total of 767 examination centers of matriculation and 385 centers of Intermediate level were being established across the country in order to maintain standard social distance between the candidates to prevent them from coronavirus. The exams of class 10th and 12th will be conducted prior to the exams of class nine and eleven, he added. He said in order to facilitate students due to the coronavirus situation, the syllabus had also been reduced.