KARACHI, April 21: The Board of Intermediate Education (BIE) was all set to hold the Higher School Certificate annual examinations in a peaceful environment from April 24, its chairman said on Monday.
For the first phase of examination, about 102,200 male and female candidates belonging to Science, Commerce (regular), General Science (regular) and Home Economics groups, have been registered, who will appear in the exam at 148 colleges and higher secondary schools, including 36 private institutions. The examinations will be held in two shifts-Morning (9.30am to 12.30pm) and Afternoon (2.30pm to 5.30pm).
At a press briefing at his office, the chairman of BIE, Prof Iftikhar H zaidi, stated that in view of the recent clashes between the two groups of students at different city colleges, the board had considered the concerns of students appearing in the HSC examinations and of their parents, and was taking all possible measures to ensure the commencement of examinations as per schedule, given earlier.
He said that he had contacted the high-ups in the government and law enforcing agencies, including officials at the Governor’s House, director-general, Rangers, secretary education, DCO and the police chief, and he had been assured that the students would be provided protection at the examination centres and arrangements would be made to tackle any law and order situation at the centres.
However, unlike previous years, the board had not issued any list of “sensitive centres” so far. The board had been issuing the list to the media and law enforcing agencies, but this year in view of the latest wave of violence at some educational institutions, each of the centres would be kept under high vigilance by agencies concerned, a BIE official at the press briefing said.
The chairman informed that different committees and teams, comprising senior government officials and senior teachers, had also been formed at different levels to ensure a transparent and fool proof examination exercise.
In addition to one vigilance officer at each examination centre, a vigilance team would be functional at the board office, which would not only be coordinating with the centre superintendents in case of emergency, but would also send teams to the centres for surprise inspections during the course of examination, he added.
He said that in addition to 57 female and 85 male examination centres, BIE had also set up 6 combined centres, where male and female students would be appearing. These mixed centres had been set up to accommodate students of the Steel Town educational institutions and of other adjacent areas.
To a question, Mr Zaidi said that exercise of authority with regard to compulsory 75 per cent attendance of the students had been a controversial issue in the past as well, but the BIE was firm that the attendance rules should be implemented in letter and spirit. He said that college principals had got all right to withhold the admit cards of students, who failed to meet the compulsory attendance criteria.
He said that about 4,800 students had opted IT as optional subjects, and the board had got all the resources, including competent examiners, for holding the examinations in a satisfactory manner. He hoped that about 3,000 more students, from Humanities group would be opting for the IT examinations, for which the process of receiving declarations was in progress.
The candidates appearing in examinations in the first phase break down as follows:
MORNING SHIFT: Pre Medical- 12,967, including 9,608 females, in Part-I and 10,594, including 8,410 females in Part-II. Commerce (Regular)-17,133, including 5,320 females in Part-I and 13,626, including 4,514 females in Part-II. Home Economics-550 in Part I and 498 in Part-II.
AFTERNOON SHIFT: 24,064, including 17,172 males in Part-I and 22,805, including 16,158 males in Part-II.
To a question, the deputy controller of examinations, Mukhtar Ahmed, said that the vigilance cell at the board would be supervised by Prof Ikramullah Khan, Principal, Liaquatabad College. His contact number at the board would be 6630346.
He said that in all 10 vigilance teams, comprising four teachers each, would be operating during the two shifts of the examination. He said that examination centres at Gadap and some other areas were not set up this year as number of candidates was too low there.
SECTION 144: In the meantime, the city government has decided to order for the imposition of section 144 in the areas of examination centres.
The EDO (Higher Education), Prof Rais Alvi, told Dawn that the matters pertaining to the examinations were reviewed at a meeting with City Nazim Naimatullah Khan on Monday and the government would impose section 144 in the areas concerned. He said that patrolling and deployment of rangers would also be ensured to avert any untoward incident.