Would-be ASIs brave elements

LAHORE – Poor arrangements made by the Punjab Public Service Commission at the University of Engineering and Technology (UET) Lahore and at Police Training School Multan for around 40,000 candidates, appeared in the written test for 163 slots of Assistant Sub-Inspectors (ASIs) on Sunday, have irked candidates.
More than 15,000 candidates appeared in the written test for assistant sub inspectors (ASI) at the University of Engineering and Technology. The written test started at 9am and concluded at 12 noon. A large number of candidates had gathered at the examination center. Some 500 policemen were on duty outside the examination hall to ensure there was no law and order situation there.
On account of mismanagement on the part of the commission, the test started an hour late although candidates had been showing up since 6am. There were poor arrangements for the candidate, no tents to shelter the candidates from the scorching sun and no chairs either.
Candidates Atif, Rana Shabbir, Khurram Warraich and Irfan Shahid, while talking to Pakistan Today, complained about poor arrangements by the Public Service Commission. They said the commission had taken Rs 400 from every candidate but it did not bother to spent a single penny on providing them with comfort. They said the commission collected about Rs 28 million for 728 seats of ASIs all over Punjab.
There were also complaints that several candidates were cheating right under the nose of examiners. “One candidate was sitting behind me and his brother, who was in police uniform, was helping him”, said Ahmed, a candidate. Candidates also complained that the paper was too tough, more like a CSS paper. They also claimed that only a small number will be able to pass the paper.
On the other hand, officials looked quite satisfied. They said if the candidates could not bear hardship, how one could expect them to complete police training. Commission member Azhar Hassan Nadeem was not available for comment. Around 25,000 candidates appeared in the ASI written test held at the Police Training School, Multan on the same day and faced similar problems.
The test started at 9:30 am instead of 8 am and candidates had to sit on ground in the open sky without tents, rugs or chairs. Reports of cheating were also received from Multan.