Govt to give test fee waiver to disabled candidates

PESHAWAR: Caretaker Chief Minister Syed Arshad Hussain Shah has decided to waive off test fee of the disabled candidates appearing in screening tests under Educational Testing and Evaluation Agency (ETEA).

He said that the disabled candidates appearing in screening tests would be exempted from the test fee, an official handout said. He was chairing the 31st meeting of the Board of Governors of ETEA here on Monday.

Caretaker Minister for Higher Education Dr Qasim Jan, Secretary Higher Education Arshad Khan, Secretary Health Mehmood Aslam and other members of the board attended the meeting.

It was decided in the meeting to constitute a committee headed by provincial Minister Justice (R) Irshad Qaiser for evolving a mechanism to dispose of the cellphones confiscated

from candidates during screening tests. The committee will come up with proposals after looking into the legal and technical aspects of the matter.

Various matters related to cheating in examinations and screening tests came under discussion in the meeting. It was decided to put in place an effective mechanism to curb the use of gadgets for cheating in examination and screening tests. The meeting directed the stakeholders to evolve a mechanism to check the menace of cheating. It was decided to take strict action against the networks of individuals involved in breaching the secrecy of examinations and screening tests.