LAHORE, Sept 22: As many as 4,500 applications have been received for six posts of assistant sub-inspectors of railway police.

Of them 57 are MA, MSc or MCS, 550 are graduates while five are law degree holders.

The basic pay scale of railway ASI is 11 and required qualification is FA.

According to railway police inspector-general Ahmad Nasim, physical fitness test of the applicants has been started and of them 200 are undergoing the test daily.

Those who will qualify the fitness test will be required to appear in a written examination to be held in the first week of October.

Mr Nasim said on a demand of the MQM MNAs, he had moved a summary to the prime minister’s secretariat for lowering the applicant’s height requirement from 5 foot, 7 inches to 5-foot-5 or 5-foot-6.

But the prime minister rejected it saying that the physical fitness criteria for the federal and motorway police and all the four provincial police services was the same and the railway police should not be exempt of it.

He said at least 35,000 application forms had been purchased by intending applicants up to June 29 as the form price had been lowered from Rs100 to Rs20 on his suggestion.