Students across the state had a harrowing time while appearing for the SSC exams on the very first day on Friday, thanks to the poor arrangements dogging the exam centres. Students had to take tests in the absence of basic facilities like benches, tables, chairs, desks, and potable water. Frequent power cuts only added to their woes. Worse was the condition of examination centres in some rural and semi-urban areas where the students were forced to write their exams sitting on the floor. At least 20 per cent of a total of 5,646 examination centres across the state were devoid of basic facilities, according to reports. Ditto for the examination centres in old city where students wrote their exams sitting on the floor. Even drinking water wasn’t available for them.

Part of the problem lay in Osmania University also holding degree exams on Friday, which led to not much space being available for the students appearing in SSC exams. Incidentally, the examination time (roughly from 9.30 am to 12 noon) set by OU and the SSC Board also clashed. Such a situation led to furore among students at various places. Many of them were seen frantically searching for their rooms in examination centres till the last time. Meanwhile, as many as 33 students were caught using unfair means while taking tests on the very first day of the SSC exams. The SSC Board suspended 11 invigilators for negligence in discharging exam duties, according to officials.