Srinagar, Sep 26: The Jammu and Kashmir Government has disclosed 23 cases of unfair means in examinations conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC) over the past five years, while three major recruitment examinations conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) in March 2022 were cancelled following reports of alleged malpractices.
The disclosures were made in a detailed written reply to a question tabled by National Conference MLA Tariq Hameed Karra during the ongoing sixth session of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, in which the government was asked whether the existing recruitment examination system required comprehensive reforms to align it with national standards.
The government said action had been taken in all 23 JKPSC unfair-means cases under the J&K Public Service Commission (Conduct of Examinations) Rules, 2022. It added that no other issue regarding irregularity in the examination process had been reported in respect of JKPSC examinations.
The three JKSSB examinations cancelled in March 2022 were for the posts of Sub-Inspector in the Home Department, Accounts Assistant in the Finance Department and Junior Engineer (Civil) in the Jal Shakti Department.
The cases remain under investigation with the concerned Investigating Agency, the government said.
All three examinations were subsequently re-conducted in December 2022, with the government stating that they were conducted successfully in a fair and transparent manner.
The government further said no such incident had been reported in the last four years, during which JKSSB conducted 169 examinations in a fair and transparent manner.
The reply outlined a technology-driven overhaul of the examination process, with both JKPSC and JKSSB using computer-based testing, OMR-based examinations and other technology-enabled mechanisms depending on the nature, scale and requirements of recruitment.
JKPSC conducts examinations under the J&K Public Service Commission (Conduct of Examinations) Rules, 2022, which also provide for descriptive-type examinations. The Commission prescribes syllabi according to the requirements of the concerned posts and requisitioning departments and makes previous question papers and examination-related material available.
For JKSSB, the government said the Board has employed both technology-enabled and OMR-based examinations and has conducted CBT-based tests in the past.
The government said the examination framework would continue to be strengthened through appropriate use of technology and regular review of examination processes and syllabi in consultation with the concerned departments.
On examination security, the government said JKPSC has introduced multiple safeguards, including identity verification and frisking of candidates, police deployment, independent Observers and Magistrates, CCTV and videography, photographic documentation and signal jammers at designated centres.
Confidential examination material is transported under police escort through a documented system of secure custody, sealing and unsealing, the reply said.
JKSSB has also put in place biometric verification and attendance, CCTV surveillance, physical frisking, videography and signal jammers at examination centres.
The Board has regulated the entire chain of custody of confidential examination material, including its secure transportation, receipt and opening of question-paper packets and sealing of answer scripts after examinations.
The government said the measures are aimed at preventing impersonation, use of unauthorised electronic devices, copying, question-paper leakage and other examination malpractices.
It said Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 is also invoked around examination centres by District Magistrates wherever considered necessary to maintain a secure examination environment.
On delays, the government said JKPSC had not exceeded the prescribed timeline for declaration of results in any recruitment examination during the last three years.
JKSSB conducted 124 recruitment examinations during the same period. Of these, 26 were postponed due to adverse weather conditions and other unavoidable exigencies, but the government said such postponements related to scheduling and did not by themselves constitute delay in declaration of results.
The postponed examinations were subsequently conducted according to revised dates notified through the Advance Recruitment Calendar.
The government said a time-bound Advance Recruitment Calendar is issued every year, with the 2026 calendar already notified and examinations being conducted according to the schedule.
On the JKCCE Mains, the government said the examination is governed by the J&K Combined Competitive Examination Rules, 2018, read with the J&K Public Service Commission (Conduct of Examinations) Rules, 2022.
The rules provide for regulated evaluation of descriptive answer scripts, including digital or on-screen evaluation, safeguards for allocation, evaluation and re-scrutiny, scrutiny of marks after declaration of results and inspection of answer scripts under prescribed conditions.
The government said these provisions provide an institutional mechanism for maintaining fairness, confidentiality and transparency throughout the examination and result process.
It said continuous improvement would remain an integral part of recruitment, with the examination framework to be reviewed and strengthened in response to changing requirements while maintaining uniformity, transparency and credibility.
