LAHORE, April 20: Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi has asked the health minister to brief him on the issue of medical entrance test to determine whether the test should be retained or not.

Talking to reporters at the inaugural ceremony of the three-day anti-polio vaccination campaign, the chief minister said the pros and cons of the continuation or abolition of the test would be discussed before taking a decision.

He said the inquiry committee formed to fix responsibility for the inclusion of objectionable material in textbooks had not submitted its report yet. The chief minister had constituted the committee under the chairmanship of the education secretary on April 10, and directed it to submit its report within seven days.

Mr Pervaiz said those found guilty would be punished in accordance with law, and added the government had already moved to replace the objectionable material with approved material. He said the education department would ensure that the deleted material was neither taught nor included in examination papers.

In reply to a question about the shortage of free textbooks in certain districts, he said the government had taken it as a 'positive' sign. He said the shortage showed that the enrolment in those districts had increased up to 15 per cent.

He said the district Nazims had been directed to ensure the supply of free textbooks to each and every student in their districts. The Punjab Textbook Board, he said, would publish more books to meet the additional demand in the districts.

The chief minister denied there was any deadlock on the NFC award issue. He said the meetings on the NFC award had been postponed as Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz had gone abroad and added that the deliberations would resume next week.