No cancellation of matric and inter exams, to be held on time across Pakistan, confirms minister

Tariq Butt, Correspondent

Pakistan Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood on Sunday announced that board exams for grades 9 to 12 would be held on time as per schedules, dispelling rumours that the ministry is cancelling them.

During a talk with reporters, he reaffirmed the government’s policy of sticking with its decision to commence examinations across the country. The statement comes on the heels of recent protests held by students voicing their demands to cancel the examinations.

A number of students have been detained by the police during a protest against matriculation and intermediate examinations outside the Higher Education Commission (HEC) office in Islamabad.

The students shouted slogans against the government and demanded the cancellation of the examinations. According to the protesters, they were taught the courses online and they claimed they were unable to prepare well for the upcoming examinations. They urged Mahmood to either approve their demands or tender his resignation.

The minister urged the students to refrain from entertaining rumours that the government will cancel exams. “Education sector has already suffered a lot due to COVID-19 pandemic,” the minister said, insisting that pandemic-induced shortcomings would have to be amended.

He reiterated that special arrangements would be made to ensure health safety and prevention of the spread of the COVID-19. However, he maintained, virtual education lacked quality and could not compensate for the physical attendance of students.

FAKE VACCINE ENTRIES

Meanwhile, police have booked three healthcare department of Punjab on charges of making fake COVID-19 vaccine entries at Expo Centre Lahore. Lahore police have registered the case against three employees — Rehan, Shahzaib and Zeeshan — under section 420 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) on the complaint of Rana Naveed, a shift in charge at the Expo Centre.

Naveed alleged that Rehan and Shahzaib administered AstraZeneca to five people demanding that particular vaccine, charging Rs4,000 per person, and Zeeshan collected the bribe amount.

He said AstraZeneca was not being officially administered at the Expo Centre, but these health employees had made fake entries in the record.

CONVOCATION

Earlier, Mirpur University of Science and Technology (MUST) held its sixth annual convocation in which 2,100 students were given graduation degrees.

Forty students won gold medals for their outstanding performance in various disciplines and five students were conferred PhD degrees.  

President Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Chancellor of the University, Sardar Masood Khan was the chief guest of the event held at an open space outside the main campus of the university while a large number of university graduates, their parents, faculty members and residents of the city attended the event.