HYDERABAD, April 18: A total of 1,179 candidates have been caught cheating since the beginning of Secondary School Certificate (SSC) parts I and II on April 8, according to a Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE), Hyderabad, report.

Talking to Dawn, BISE chairman Prof Eng Abdul Aleem Khanzada attributed the high number of cheating cases to gaps in security arrangement, interrupted power supply and incompetence of a few invigilators.

He said that these cases had been caught by 26 vigilance and monitoring teams across nine districts which fall under the jurisdiction of BISE Hyderabad. He said that 1,075 of the total cases were of copying during exam and 104 were of impersonating another candidate.

Besides, said the BISE chairman, 20 invigilators were also disqualified for failing to check unfair means or abetting the candidates.

The BISE chairman suggested devising a monitoring system by district administrations, and, education and literacy department for examining the teaching process and checking teaching in schools.

Appreciating the efforts of district administrations, law enforcement agencies including police and Rangers, he said that all departments cooperated with the visiting teams and staff of examination centres in all nine districts.