The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) today announced that it would be waiving the examination and registration fees for Class 10, 12 students whose parents have succumbed to coronavirus. The decision applies to the academic year 2021-22.

The new norm applies also to students who have lost a surviving parent or their legal guardian. It is up to the schools to verify the genuineness of the submissions made by their students.

The decision has been welcomed by activists, commentators and educators. "A lot of children have been orphaned by the pandemic. It was important to waive their fees in order to ease the financial burden posed by the exam system," a Facebook user said.

As is known, the CBSE cancelled both class 10 and 12 exams for 2020-21 earlier this year, saying that the assessment of students will be made on the basis of the objective criterion developed by it.