The ICSE and ISC improvement and compartmental exams for 2020 started on Tuesday.

But principals of several schools said hardly any student had appeared for the improvement exams in Calcutta.

The improvement exams for both ICSE and ISC are to be held in subjects where exams could not be held in the initial days of the pandemic.

“For subjects that have been held, the ICSE council is not holding any improvement exams,” the principal of a city school said.

On Tuesday, 60 students appeared for the compartmental exams in ICSE across 12 centres in the city. For ISC, the number was 200 across nine centres.

A convener has been assigned for each of the centres.

Students can appear for compartmental exams if they have failed to secure pass marks in any of the three subjects in ISC and any of the four subjects in ICSE, apart from English.

Securing pass marks in English is compulsory to appear for compartmental exams.

The council had on September 23 announced the dates for the compartmental and improvement exams.

The improvement exams for ICSE are scheduled for October 6 to 9 and for ISC, October 6 and 7.

The compartmental exams for ICSE are scheduled for October 6 and 7 and for ISC, October 6.

Candidates have to maintain distancing rules, the council had said.

“Since the number of students who took the compartmental exams on Tuesday was low, it was easy to maintain distancing rules,” the principal of a city school, which is a centre, said.

The council had decided to change its earlier decision of holding the exams in November to October because of the way the all-India entrance tests such as NEET had been held. Also, students should not face any problem during undergraduate admissions, the council had said.