Forget one-minute late norm, Telangana inter students to face stricter entry rules for exams

Students appearing for inter exams, starting March 5, will be barred from entering the centres even if they turn up 15 minutes prior to exam commencement

Hyderabad: Forget one-minute late norm or getting grace time, students appearing for the intermediate public examinations (IPE) 2025 will be barred from entering the centres even if they turn up 15 minutes prior to commencement of the examination.

The Telangana Board of Intermediate Education, which is holding IPE from March 5, has set stricter new examinations’ rules with the last entry into centres being 8.45 am. The examinations will be conducted from March 5 to 25 from 9 am to 12 noon.

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“Candidates should occupy the seats allotted to them in the examination hall by 8.30 am. Candidates reporting after 8.45 am will not be allowed into the examination halls,” the Board said.

Several students and parents are worried that the new rules will only add more stress and anxiety to students during crucial board examinations. The cut off time of 8.45 am, they say, leaves no room for error, particularly those in the city who may face delays due to traffic jams, public transportation issues or other unforeseen circumstances.

Previously, students were allowed to enter the centres until the start of the exam, with a cut-off time of 9 am. However, this norm was relaxed during the last year examinations, giving students five minutes of grace time to enter the centre after 9 am.

The Board had relaxed the norm as one student, after he allegedly was refused entry into the examination hall citing the one-minute late rule, ended his life by jumping into an irrigation project.

Earlier, the TGCHE had decided to introduce the clause of 15 minutes before the commencement of exam as the last reporting time at the centre for all the common entrance tests conducted for admissions to various professional programmes in the State from this year.

Meanwhile, the TG BIE integrated QR code embedded with location of the centre into the hall tickets to assist students to locate their centres with ease. A toll free number 9240205555 and district control room incharge number have also been printed on the hall tickets.

This time, the Board constituted 1,532 centres across the State for smooth conduct of the examinations for which 9,96,541, including 4,88,316 first year and 5,08,225 second-year, students registered to appear.