The government has decided to provide financial assistance to meritorious HSC candidates from disadvantaged families under the Chattogram Board who have been affected by the ongoing floods.
Lists of eligible students from Satkania, Lohagara, Chandanaish and Banshkhali upazilas in Chattogram, all upazilas of Bandarban, and Cox's Bazar have already been sent to Dhaka, said officials of the Chattogram District Administration and the Chattogram Education Board today.
Around 5,000 to 6,000 students are expected to receive the financial assistance, they said.
The lists were prepared based on information collected by examination centre secretaries.
Officials at the Chattogram Education Board said centre-wise lists of poor and meritorious students affected by the floods have been prepared in every district under the board. The process is now in its final stage, while district administrations are verifying the lists of genuinely affected students.
Speaking to The Daily Star, Pathan Md Saifuzzaman, additional deputy commissioner (Education and ICT) of Chattogram, said, "Our office received a letter from the Education Board requesting a list of eligible students. We collected the information from examination centre secretaries through the upazila administrations and sent it to the board. The list mainly includes HSC candidates from extremely poor families who have demonstrated academic merit.”
Requesting anonymity, a senior Chattogram Education Board official told The Daily Star that the authorities will verify the information again before selecting the beneficiaries for financial assistance. The amount of assistance has not yet been determined.
Flash floods triggered by relentless monsoon rains and hill torrents have created a humanitarian crisis across Chattogram and its adjoining districts, leaving 43 people dead, hundreds of thousands stranded, and vast areas of homes and cropland inundated.
Due to the flooding, the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations under the Chattogram Education Board have been postponed until July 16.
According to the Chattogram Divisional Commissioner's Office, the floods have damaged 145 educational institutions in Chattogram district, 41 in Bandarban, 29 in Khagrachhari, 30 in Cox's Bazar and 32 in Rangamati.
