"We want to break with the tardition (by not printing SLC question papers in India) this year," said Shukla, responding to the queries from lawmakers in a meeting of Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Monday. [break]
Shukla said, "We had never intended to print SLC question papers in India, leaving our security press useless (as anticipated by the CIAA)."
Previously, following news reports about Janak Shiksha Samagri Kendra (JSSK) printing SLC question papers again in India, the CIAA had asked the MoE to not do so. The anti-graft body and the parliamentary committee promptly raised this issue, smelling a rat in the JSSK´s intention. It is believed that the officials at JSSK that has its own security press print SLC question papers in India for commission.
Three years ago, the JSSK had installed a security press, mainly for printing confidential materials, with a grant of 160 million provided by donor agencies under Secondary Education Support Program (SESP). However, the JSSK continued to print SLC question papers in India stating that the security press operators could leak question papers.
Minister Shukla also informed the parliamentary committee about the MoE´s plan to safely print SLC papers. According to him, the MoE will seek assistance from Nepal Army (NA) in protecting the security press while printing question papers. "The NA´s help is a must at a time when impunity has become a norm," he said.
A committee led by former education secretary Jay Ram Giri had recommended to the MoE in the past to adopt strict measures for safely printing question papers. The committee feared hooligans may attack the security press operators and loot question papers. The committee had also recommended keeping an alert eye on the press operators.
"We can not rule out the possibility of the press operators leaking question papers," Shukla said. "Therefore, we are planning to bar them from carrying mobile phones inside the press while the question papers are being printed. We are also mulling over installing CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras on the premise of security press."
"The guilty will be punished"
Education Minister Shukla also assured the parliamentary committee that the government would take the necessary action against those accused in the answer-sheet scam in Higher Secondary Education Board (HSEB). "Nobody can escape the punishment by just resigning," he said, adding, "We will not spare them just because they no longer hold the post."
Earlier, Upendra Kumar Koirala, the then Vice Chairman of the HSEB, had resigned from his post after a probe team formed by the MoE implicated him, including other HSEB officials, in the scam. The then member secretary of the HSEB Ram Bahadur Khadka, who is also implicated by the probe committee, has been sent to reserve pool.
During last year´s grade XI and XII exams, the HSEB officials including Koirala and Khadka were dragged into controversy after financial comptroller Kameshwor Mandal accused them of violating Public Procurement Act-2007 while awarding the contract for printing over 44 million answer sheets. Similarly, the bundles of answer sheets sent to exam centers were found to have contained fewer papers.
Related story
Ballot papers printed for 36 districts
