A ward in Tata Memorial Hospital at Parel turned into an SSC exam centre on Saturday , as Mallick Sagira Ali, a Class 10 student and cancer patient suffering from cancer, appeared for her boards from her hospital bed.
The state board made special arrangements for this purpose, as she could not take the exam at the official centre. Ali, a student of Mount Mary Convent High School, Bandra, was hospitalised on Friday, following an emergency. As she was unable to go to her exam centre at Canossa High School, Mahim, she alerted the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE), Mumbai division about her circumstances.
On receiving her appeal, the state board sent a police constable, writer and a female invigilator, with a sealed bundle of 25 question papers to the hospital on Saturday morning.
Sandeep Sangve, secretary, MSBSHSE, Mumbai division, said, “We got a call at 10am on Saturday morning and immediately made arrangements to help the student.
She appeared for the exam from the hospital under the observation of our staff, with the help of a writer.”Ali was given an extra 20 minutes to complete the exam. She was also given the question paper 10 minutes before the exam so that she could read the questions.
Ali’s kin said, “We are grateful to the board for permitting her to appear for the exam from the hospital. It helped save her an academic year.”Ali had appeared for her English, Marathi, Hindi and Mathematics (Paper 1) from the designated exam centre. Sangve added, “If she requests, we will allow her to appear for the Science and Technology papers on March 16 and 18and the Social Sciences papers on March 21 and 23, from the hospital.”
