Gujarat Lokayukta suggests printing recruitment exam papers at govt-run press to avoid leak

Gandhinagar: Gujarat Lokayukta has suggested printing of question papers for recruitment exams conducted by the state Subordinate Service Selection Board only at the government-run press, which would help in fixing responsibility in the event of a paper leak.

The Lokayukta also recommended that only a few persons, such as the selection board chairman, should have an idea about the exact questions to be incorporated in the paper.

These observations were made in the 'Twenty Third Annual Consolidated Report of Lokayukta of Gujarat', which was tabled in the state assembly on Wednesday during the ongoing budget session.

The Lokayukta also suggested to consider the paper-setting procedure followed by the Gujarat Public Service Commission (GPSC) or the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

In 2022, the Lokayukta registered an inquiry based on complaints from people in view of the leak of question papers for various written tests conducted by the Gujarat Subordinate Service Selection Board (GSSSB).

"To make the system transparent and accountable and to avoid any such incident in future, it is desirable if the government, at the appropriate level, makes necessary modification in the procedure so that responsibility can be fixed and cross-examination can be done," stated the report prepared by Lokayukta Justice Rajesh Shukla (retired).

The Lokayukta stated that "first of all, the papers should be printed only at the government-run press where the responsibility could be fixed in case of a paper leak incident."

"Even if the present system is continued, some changes in the procedure are required to maintain secrecy. When the paper goes into printing, persons involved in the printing or the owner of the press should also follow certain norms," as per the report.

Notably, police investigations in the past revealed that a question paper for the head clerks recruitment exam was leaked from a private press in Sanand city, which was given the paper printing contract by the GSSSB.

Similarly, a question paper for the junior clerk recruitment exam was leaked from a private press in Telangana.

The Lokayukta also suggested framing a more detailed procedure for setting question papers for competitive exams.

According to the Lokayukta, only a few persons, such as the chairman of the board, should have an idea about the exact questions being included in the paper even as different sets of questions are collected from one or more moderators.

"Thus, it will not be known which questions are likely to be included in the final paper. A close examination of the procedure for setting the papers followed by the GPSC or UPSC could be considered to get a better idea for improving the process of conducting the examination," the Lokayukta added.