As many as 1,100 under-age students appearing for 10th exam

Hyderabad: As per a new report, at the age of studying in the seventh and eighth standards, as many as 1,100 students below 12 years of age will appear for 10th standard exam. The Education Department has to sanction special permission for the 1,100 students of 12 years age to write the 10th standard exam.

According to the norms, the students must have completed 14 years of age as on August 31 of the academic year beginning at the time of admission into 10th class. For instance, students writing 10th class exam this March must have completed 14 years of age by August 31, 2019. It's become a common feature that a reasonable number of 10th class students are of 12 years. Government school headmaster can approve if the students' age is 18 months less than 15 years. SSC Board Director can permit students if the age is below two-year-gap. If it's more than two years, then the Education Department secretary has to allow the students, said an official. Out of the approved 1,100 students of 12 years age, 90 per cent are from private schools.

However, the officials say that the under-age students after passing out SSC may face problem in NEET eligibility criterion. After completing Intermediate with BPC group and securing good score in NEET exam, they may not get MBBS seat unless they complete 17 years of age, said the officials. Unless courts are involved in this matter, students below 17 years of age can not be allowed into the MBBS course.

The students must have completed 17 years by December 31, 2020, for becoming eligible for MBBS course from the next academic year.

So far, Agastya Jaiswal from Hyderabad was the youngest in Telangana to clear Intermediate exam. At the age of 11 years, Jaiswal cleared the Intermediate exam with 63 per cent in 2017. Jaiswal completed SSC at the age of nine years in 2015. He took special permission from the Telangana SSC Board.