Amid tight security, internet shutdown, lakhs reach exam centres in West Bengal to appear for TET after 5 years
Amid tight security, around 7 lakh aspirants are rushing to examination centers in West Bengal to appear for the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) on Sunday after a gap of five years.
Internet will be shut down in six districts before the exam starts at 12 noon. “In the districts of Uttar Dinajpur, Malda, Murshidabad, Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur and Dakshin Dinajpur, any data related message will not be transmitted in the larger public interest. This order will come into force with effect from 11.30 am. on December 11 till 2.30 pm,” said an order issued by the state government.
The TET exam is conducted for the recruitment of assistant teachers in government aided/government sponsored/junior basic primary schools for classes 1 to 5. A total of 6,90,931 candidates will appear for the TET exam which will be held at 1,453 centers this year from 12 :00 to 14:30. The West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE) has made biometric testing of TET candidates mandatory, besides installing CCTV cameras at all examination centres. Metal detectors are also provided to search for candidates. The board has also sent guidelines to all district magistrates and the Kolkata Police Commissioner.
The metro rail and state transport department has announced additional services so that candidates do not face any problem in reaching their examination centres. The Metro has been crowded since the morning, unlike usual Sundays. The metro rail runs 138 trains (69 UP and 69 DN) – additional eight (4 UP and 4 DN) train services – for TET candidates on the North-South corridor (Blue Line). Metro services are available at an interval of seven minutes before the start of the exam, instead of the normal 15-minute interval on Sundays, while trains will run at 10-minute intervals in the afternoon.
Many candidates reached their exam center much before the scheduled time. The gates were opened at 09:30. “I’ve been preparing for it for a long time, so I’m not nervous. However, I prefer not to be late, so I reached here around 9 am,” said Prapti Sen, a candidate waiting outside City College.
As per the instructions issued by the board, no candidate will be allowed to leave the examination center before the conclusion of the examination except for urgent and unavoidable reasons. The board also issued various instructions to the overseers. Students are not allowed to enter the examination centers without an admit card.
Watches, scales, sunglasses, earphones, mobile phones, water bottles and all electronic products are prohibited at the examination centre.
The transport department has opened a control room at the office of the public vehicle division in Beltala (contact number 033-24751621) to help candidates reach their examination centres. The control room, headed by a deputy director of the transport directorate, along with two motor vehicle inspectors and other staff, will remain operational until the completion of the examination process.
