The Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations will begin simultaneously across the country on Thursday, with over 12.70 lakh candidates set to appear under 11 education boards.
Secondary and Higher Education Division Secretary Abdul Khaleque revealed this information at a press briefing held the Secretariat on Wednesday.
Education Minister A N M Ehsanul Hoque Milon and the Prime Minister's Adviser on Education Mahdi Amin were also present.
Students from 9,439 educational institutions will sit for the examinations at 2,697 centres under the country's nine general education boards, the Bangladesh Madrasa Education Board and the Bangladesh Technical Education Board, said Khaleque.
A total of 77 subjects will be covered over 21 examination days.
Regular classes will continue at educational institutions on days when no examinations are scheduled, he said.
Of the total candidates, 6,21,969 are male and 648,614 are female under the nine general education boards with female candidates outnumbering males by 26,645.
The Education Minister said all nine general education boards will conduct examinations using a uniform set of question papers this year.
CCTV cameras have been installed at all examination centres, while a central monitoring cell has been set up at the Ministry of Education to oversee examination activities in real time across the country, he said.
Police officers deployed at examination centres will also be equipped with body-worn cameras to help prevent any untoward incidents, he added.
Abdul Khaleque said exam centres previously identified as vulnerable to question paper leaks or cheating have been cancelled.
However, some centres in haor areas, the Chattogram Hill Tracts and remote char regions have been retained considering the transportation difficulties faced by students.
Candidates belonging to the Seventh-day Adventist community will be allowed to take Saturday examinations after sunset under special arrangements, he said.
A total of 1,069,714 candidates will sit for the examinations under the nine general education boards this year, an increase of 14,316 from last year.
The number of participating institutions has increased by 77, while the number of examination centres has risen by 21.
Bangladesh Madrasa Education Board has 92,905 candidates this year, up by 6,803 from last year. The number of institutions under the board has increased by 23 and examination centres by two.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Technical Education Board has 107,964 candidates, 1,647 fewer than last year.
The number of examination centres under the board has also declined by 123 to 610.