LAHORE: The Punjab Examination Commission (PEC) has announced that the large-scale primary and middle standard examinations for 2015 will begin from Feb 21 and 27, respectively.

Some 2.2 million children, including 40 per cent from private schools, have been registered for the examinations.

A PEC spokesman says the commission has established 5,000 centres for class V students and 4,100 for class VIII students.

He says the allotment of examination centres to students will be completed by Sunday (tomorrow) and then roll number slips will be issued by the cluster heads online.

He says six versions of question papers will be distributed at each centre to curb cheating.

According to the date sheet, class-V science paper will be held on Feb 21, mathematics Feb 23, English Feb 24, Urdu Feb 25 and Islamiyat (written) and Nazra Quran/Ethics on Feb 26.

Similarly, the class-VIII science paper will be held on Feb 27, mathematics Feb 28, English March 2, Urdu March 3 and Islamiyat (written) and Nazra Quran/Ethics on March 4.

Meanwhile, some printers and publishers have alleged that the PEC management was trying to oblige one party for the printing of question papers-cum-answer sheets.

Sources said four printers had submitted their bids but the PEC management disqualified three of them on technical grounds. They say those disqualified had given printing rates much less than the selected one.

Smelling a rat in the bidding process, which involves millions of rupees transactions, sources say the tailor-made criteria cannot be met by the new entrants in the project.

PEC Chief Executive Officer Nasir Iqbal Malik said the commission had this year decided to create one-organisation solution from printing of question papers for their safe delivery to all 36 EDOs (education) in the province.

He said the selected Hassan Ijaz Printers would be required to print six versions of each paper.

This year, he said, the organistaion would deliver each subject’s question paper one after the other instead of dumping all question papers in one go.

He said he had negotiated the printing rate and added it would be significantly less than the last year rate of Rs1.49 per leaf.

Published in Dawn February 7th , 2015

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