KARACHI: Teachers reluctant to set up exam centres: Violence in colleges
By Mukhtar Alam
KARACHI, April 27: In view of the law and order situation in city colleges, which worsened again recently, a number of college teachers are unwilling to see setting up of annual HSC examinations centres at their colleges. According to sources in the academic circle, teachers fed up with the unabated external interference and absence of security at the examination centres, are reluctant to conduct the HSC annual exams, held under the Board of Intermediate Education, Karachi.
The board has planned to establish 183 centres for HSC exams, to be held in two shifts from May 17, at government and private colleges. About 118 centres would be for science group exams, to be held in the morning session, while 65 would be for Commerce (regular and private groups) exams, to be conducted in the evening shift.
Similar to previous years, the BIEK has this year too constituted teams comprising its officials and senior college teachers to inspect colleges where centres could be set up.
However, the survey by the BIEK team members is a routine, as it is mostly aimed at judging the accessibility of candidates to a proposed centre, and availability of furniture and other amenities there.
It does not address security arrangements or problems teachers had faced in the past, mostly at the hands of outsiders, political concerns and groups of candidates, demanding the ‘right to use unfair means’ in exams, said a source in the board.
It may be recalled that some outsiders had managed to enter the premises of a degree college in Sector 5-L, North Karachi last year, asking that their favourites be ‘facilitated’ in solving papers.
Reports about external interference were also received from the Government Degree College Buffer Zone, Degree College 7-D/2 North Karachi, Korangi 2-1/2 College, Govt Girls College New Karachi, Gulzar-i-Hijri College and the Superior College.
Following a firing incident outside an examination centre in Buffer Zone last year, the teachers performing examination duties there had denied continuing with the exams, which, according to them were being held in a highly insecure environment.
It was learnt that a couple of college principals had clearly informed the BIEK officials that their colleges be spared from examination duties this time.
The teachers of the colleges, who approached the board, were of the view that the centres be shifted to some other area, as it would practically be impossible for them to perform befittingly and ensure the sanctity of the exams, said a source privy to the BIEK’s examination works.
Teachers were also of the view that the routine practice of the BIEK to declare a number of exam centres sensitive had proved futile, as neither were the police deployed there nor could the Rangers mobile vans be seen in the vicinity of such exam centres.
They said the board should also try the option of shifting some of its exam centres from colleges, which it considered sensitive, so that both the candidates and the examiners could concentrate on the exams in a peaceful environment.
Prof Riaz Ahsan, President of the Sindh Professors and Lecturers’ Association, said that college teachers had their reservations concerning the prevailing law and order situation in colleges, and about the inadequate security arrangements made during the exams in the past.
The SPLA has verbally communicated to the board officials that teachers would not conduct exams if the board and the administration did not commit to dealing rowdy elements and politically motivated groups with a firm hand.
“Our teachers are threatened of dire consequences by anti-social elements, which should not go unnoticed,” he added.
He suggested that a couple of colleges be dropped from the list of exam centres for a foolproof and peaceful conduct of exams.
Independent sources, however, mentioned that the recent wave of hostilities and protests had considerably hampered the academic process at educational institutions. And, if an immediate solution to the problem was not found, it would be difficult for the activists of two major students groups in the city to report for exams at some of the centres.
When contacted, the chairman of the BIEK, Prof Iftikhar Hussain Zaidi, said the board was still in the process of finalizing the list of centres. “At present, we are mainly considering the accommodation and accessibility aspects for
selecting an educational institution for the purpose of an exam centre,” he informed, saying that letters were also being sent to relevant authorities for security arrangements at the centres.
To a question, he said that strict measures could be taken at centres, which are questioned from the law and order point of view, but any abrupt decision to abolish the old centres would not bear any fruit. “We prefer to establish centres along main roads and avoid pushing them into the streets, as it doubles the problems,” the board chairman said.
