KARACHI, April 21: The students taking SSC Part-II exams are facing hardships both at home and at examination centres due to frequent and prolonged power failures.

Over hundred thousand students are taking the exams that started on April 17 at the 415 centres set up across the city.

Interviews with some students showed that despite inadequate facilities at a number of examination centres, including water scarcity, broken benches and dirty toilets, they find it too difficult to brave the power failures.

The first day of the examination was brought more difficulties for the students who reached their centres located in different parts of the metropolis through miserable public transport and when they found their examination rooms and finally got settled to take exams most of them had already their minds boggling.

The situation could not change in the days to follow as the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation stuck to its past practice and added to the ordeal of the students by offering frequent power cuts during exams.

The survey of a number of examination centres at different parts of the city showed that most of them miserably lacked basic facilities. Even if there was no load-shedding, the students – both boys and girls – found them sweltered at the examination rooms in the absence of fans.

“I cannot even study at home because of power outages and appearing in examinations in such conditions is just like a nightmare,” Irum Karim, a candidate at an examination centre in Baldia Town, told Dawn.

Many students were critical about the holding of matriculation examination in April instead of March which had been scheduled month till last year when the education authorities delayed the academic year from April to August.

Even at home, students could not peacefully do preparations for examinations because of electricity outages.

Many students said they could not give a final look to their books due to power cuts.

“I found myself absent-minded and unprepared despite months long studies because the load-shedding not only deprived me of revising the books but also of a good sleep to wake up afresh,” Mashkoor Junaid, another candidate, said.

Many parents think the students were luckier than the ninth class students who would take exams in May, unarguably the hottest month of the year.