New Delhi:
The controversy surrounding the 70th Combined Preliminary Examination of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) is assuming critical proportions every day. Students have raised allegations about irregularities in the exam, poor quality of question paper and similarities between the questions in the exam and model papers of coaching institutes. They therefore demand a complete cancellation of the exam and a re-examination.
Opposition parties such as the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, CPI (ML) and Jan Suraaj support the students' demands and criticize the government for endangering the future of students. BPSC has rejected these allegations, terming them “irrational” and urged students to focus on preparing for the main exam.
Most important developments to date
The controversy surrounding the 70th combined preliminary examination of BPSC, which began on December 6, 2024, continues to be a subject of debate. The advertisement for this exam was released in September 2024 and 483,000 candidates registered, out of which 325,000 appeared for the exam.
The exam was conducted for 2,031 positions, including 200 SDMs, 136 DSPs and other official officer posts, making it one of the largest vacancies in recent years.
The exam took place on December 13, 2024, between 12 noon and 2 p.m., during which candidates answered 150 questions on general knowledge.
Timeline of events:
December 6: Students raised concerns over normalization and accused BPSC of introducing the practice. BPSC rejected these allegations, calling them 'rumors', and stated that there were no plans for normalization.
December 13: There was a disturbance at Bapu Pariksha Parisar (Bapu Exam Complex) in Patna where the question papers were delayed. As a result, BPSC decided to re-conduct the exam for 12,000 candidates from this center on January 4, 2025.
December 18: Protests at the Gardanibagh protest site intensify, with students demanding the complete cancellation of the exam. The protest is still ongoing.
Alleged irregularities in other centers:
While BPSC has acknowledged the delay in distribution of question papers at Bapu exam complex in Patna, students are also alleging irregularities at other exam centers:
The Bapu exam center in Patna, built by the Bihar government in 2023, has also come under scrutiny. Although the Bihar government claims to be the largest examination center in the country and capable of accommodating 20,000 candidates at a time, coordination between the BPSC, Patna District Administration and the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) was reportedly poor, which contributed to the delay in the exam. the exam.
In a press release, BPSC clarified that the Bapu examination complex is under the administrative control of the BSEB, without direct involvement of the BPSC.
Allegations regarding the question paper:
Another major concern of students is the content of the question paper. Many students have commented that the questions seemed to be at the level of a police recruitment exam and closely aligned model papers of coaching institutes.
Responding to this, BPSC secretary Satyaprakash Sharma explained that the exam paper has been prepared by an independent panel of experts, and if the paper was simple, the cutoff would be higher, which should not be a cause for concern.
He acknowledged that there were some similarities with the coaching institute papers but downplayed their significance saying that these questions would not help a candidate pass the exam.
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