HYDERABAD, May 16: Intermediate examinations in Hyderabad, Sukkur and Larkana divisions began on Thursday under the supervision of the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) amidst mismanagement and rampant use of ‘aid’ material.

Around 85,809 students of classes XI and XII would be appearing in the Higher Secondary School (HSC) examinations being held across 120 centres — 46 for boys and 31 for girls exclusively with 43 combined centres — in nine districts under the BISE.

Out of the total students, 44,236 are appearing in first year and the remaining 41,573 are appearing in second year examinations.

Though no untoward incident was reported from any centre, students were observed to be cheating quite freely. A visit to the Government Muslim Degree Science College revealed that guides and solved papers, even cell phones, were being used in the presence of invigilators. The cell phones were asked to be submitted to the invigilator only when an assistant commissioner directed invigilators to recover phones from students.

There was no proper seating arrangement for students, who also did not have drinking water at the examination centres with the mercury reaching 43 degrees Celcius. At one centre two first year students were observed solving their paper on one bench because there weren’t enough invigilators to seat them in separate rooms.

The presence of unconcerned persons in the premises of exam centres remained unchecked by the college staff who also seen smuggling cheating aides to students.

Another issue, which came to fore, was appointment of junior teachers as external superintendents. Though the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association (SPLA) has voiced reservations over it, BISE chairman Aleemuddin Khanzada defended the decision by arguing that even if a college principal was serving at BPS-21 he was supposed to work as an internal in his own college as per government decision.

“If we go by the explanation of BISE chairman that college principal has to work as an internal then there are numerous cases where principals have been deputed as externals by the BISE itself,” argued SPLA representative Prof Yaqoob Chandio.

However, BISE chairman said that principals often expressed their desire to become externals but the decision that principals must work as internals regardless of their service scale was taken by the education department’s steering committee.

APP Adds: Load shedding in examination centres and lax security were among the top complaints in examination centres, besides use of unfair means by students and college staff. According to BISE Sukkur, vigilance teams comprising senior male and female teachers did not report any case of cheating on Thursday.

Prof Muhammad Yousuf of the BISE said that centre superintendents mostly complained of load shedding and the absence of police personnel. He said that he paid surprise visits to four or five examination centres during exam hours and found them without electricity supply even though centre superintendents had been instructed to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply at all costs. Prof Yousuf said that he also did not see any vehicles of the police or Rangers near these examination centres.

Meanwhile in Khairpur district, examination process went on smoothly and Rangers and police personnel were deployed in the area, said an examination staffer. However, candidates from a number of schools in Ghotki district also complained of load shedding.

Section 144 had already been imposed in Sukkur division to prevent the use of Photostat machines near during exam hours near the centres.