Education Minister Ehsanul Haque Milon said the planned timing of next year’s Secondary School Certificate examinations was changed because of Ramadan. Speaking at a press conference on Monday afternoon at the Technical and Madrasa Education Division meeting room of the Education Ministry, he said authorities considered the overall calendar before setting the schedule.

Milon said a January start would have kept examinations running for about a month, extending into the first week of February. Ramadan is set to begin on 10 February and continue until 10 March, making examinations impossible during that period, he said. He added that the government aims to hold public examinations at fixed times and considers February the most suitable month for SSC examinations in Bangladesh.

The minister had said on 14 May that the examinations would begin on 7 January, a plan criticised by candidates and guardians because Ramadan and Eid would fall during that period. On 2 June, he said the timetable could be revised if stakeholders wanted it. The schedule released on 24 August sets written examinations from 14 March to 15 April.