KARACHI, May 14: In view of the recent clashes between some student groups in the city, the Board of Intermediate Education (BIE), Karachi, has expanded its list of sensitive centres for the purpose of the HSC annual examinations, which commence on May 16.
A source in the board said that the authorities wanted the exams of intermediate to be held peacefully, without any outside interruption.
The street clashes of students and the deteriorating law and order situation warranted that law-enforcing agencies should ensure special security at the centres categorized as "sensitive" and "most sensitive", added the source.
Last year, the BIE had marked 20 HSC examination centres, including one for woman candidates, set up in government colleges, as sensitive as far as the law and order situation was concerned. This year, there are 12 “most sensitive” and 16 “sensitive” examination centres, including five centres for woman candidates.
The source said that a number of colleges where the BIE had run its major examination centres in the past had initially expressed their inability to hold exams, but finally, most of them agreed after being persuaded that law enforcing personnel would be deployed at almost all the centres to discourage unruly external elements from interfering in the examination process.
The lists of centres in question are as follows: Most sensitive; Govt City College, Moosa Colony; Sirajuddaula College; Degree
Science and Commerce College, Banaras Chowk, Orangi Town; Nabibagh Z M
Science College, Saddar; Technical High School, Jacob Lines; Qureshi High School; Jamia Millia College for Education; Jamia Millia Government College, Malir; Degree Science College, Saudabad, Malir; Liaquat Government College, Malir; SMB Fatima Jinnah Girls College, Garden West; and Islamia College for Women, Jacob Lines.
Sensitive; Degree College 7-D/2, North Karachi; Degree College, Buffer Zone; Degree Science College, Liaquatabad; Government Boys Secondary School, Liaquatabad; Islamia Arts and Commerce College; Islamia Science College; Adamjee Science College; Aisha Bawany College; Government College of Commerce and Economics; Government Intermediate College, 36-B, Landhi; Degree Science and Commerce College, Landhi/Korangi-6; Degree College for Women, Sector 42, Korangi 2-1/2; Degree College for Women, Korangi-4; Government College for Women, Korangi-6; Degree College, 5-L, North Karachi; and Degree College, Gulshan-i-Iqbal.
Talking to Dawn on Saturday, the BIE Chairman, Prof Iftikhar H Zaidi, said that the Home Department, city nazim, town police officers, Rangers, EDO (Higher Education) had already been sent letters, informing them about the exams so they could ensure necessary measures at their ends.
He said the board was all set for conducting the exams in a peaceful and foolproof manner.
Though it had been a challenging situation for the board's staff in the wake of the May 12 strike call and a couple of other technical reasons, the examination staff had accomplished almost all related work, he said, adding that 99 per cent of the colleges had collected the admit cards of the Science group candidates till Saturday.
In all, 190 examination centres, including 71 for woman candidates, have been earmarked at government and private colleges and higher secondary schools for over 141,000 candidates.
The exams will be held in two shifts. For the Science groups, including Science General and Home Economics, the exams will be held in the morning shift from 9am to 12noon, while for the Commerce group, the exams will be held in the afternoon shift from 2pm to 5pm.
The breakdown of candidates is as follows: Pre-Engineering; Part-I, 16,278 males and 6,098 women; and Part-II, 15,863 males and 7,041 women. Pre-Medical; Part-I, 3,870 males and 12,121 women; and Part-II, 4,779 males and 14,172 women. Home Economics; Part I, 507; and Part II, 521. Commerce (Regular); Part-I, 15,547 male and 8,535 women; and Part-II, 13,025 males and 7,922 women. Commerce (Private); Part-I, 5,772 males and 1,804 women; and Part-II, 6,619 males and 1,744 women.
