MDCAT held peacefully across 7 K-P districts
The Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) was conducted in 7 districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday amid tight security arrangements.
The provincial government had already decided to partially block mobile network in these districts in order to prevent the use of mobile SIM devices and even internet cafes had been shut down adjacent to the examination centres.
Candidates were not allowed to carry pencils, pens, mobiles or even water bottles inside the examination halls and commissioners, deputy commissioners, district police officers and other officials had been assigned the task of strictly monitoring the situation and take action against the violators on the spot.
Caretaker K-P Chief Minister Justice (retd) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah paid a short visit to Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan on Sunday to review the arrangements for holding the MDCAT at the centre established in the premises of the varsity.
The authorities concerned at the centre briefed the chief minister about the arrangements made for the MDCAT, saying that foolproof arrangements in all respects had been put in place for holding the test in a transparent manner.
The chief minister was informed that a total of 5,443 candidates were registered at the Mardan centre for taking the MDCAT, adding that entry of all irrelevant persons into the premises of the centre was prohibited whereas all kinds of electronic gadgets, including cell phones, wrist watches etc, were banned in the premises.
It was informed that complete body search of all the candidates and supervising staff had been ensured while mobile service in the area had been suspended through the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority.
The chief minister was informed that the required strength of the supervising staff had also been ensured for conducting the test in the desired manner whereas Section 144 of CrPC had already been imposed by the district administration to ban the use of all kinds of electronic gadgets in the vicinity of the centre.
In September, the caretaker K-P cabinet decided to re-conduct the MDCAT test through the Khyber Medical University within six weeks.
During a news conference following the caretaker cabinet’s meeting, Information Minister Barrister Feroze Jamal Shah Kakakhel addressed the MDCAT scam, acknowledging the injustice inflicted upon bright students.
The previous MDCAT held in the K-P on Sept 11 was marred by the use of unfair means. During the test, the examination staff apprehended more than 40 students for allegedly trying to cheat using topnotch Bluetooth devices. In view of the scandal, the caretaker provincial cabinet on Sept 29 also decided to re-conduct the test.
The joint investigation team formed by the K-P government to probe into the use of covert Bluetooth devices for cheating during the MDCAT in September identified the mastermind. However, the JIT did not release his name.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 27th, 2023.