UP pre-med test organisers' novel ways of preventing cheating

Haunted by the spectre of cheating in the MBBS entrance exam for those aspiring to be doctors, the Uttar Pradesh Combined Pre-Medical Test (CPMT) organisers have this year put in place unprecedented security measures. These include bringing answer sheets on a chartered flight, keeping secret the forward route of the sheets and closing all photocopying shops around the test centres. Other steps include taking fingerprints, keeping handwriting experts on standby and videographing all examinees as they enter the centres to write their paper. [caption id=“attachment_328763” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The UP pre-medical entrance organisers have gone to great lengths to prevent cheating.”]  [/caption] Around 77,000 students will appear for the test on 3 June. The Chatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Medical University (CSMMU) is conducting the test. CPMT had been in the past marred by accusations of mass copying and impersonation. But organisers said security this year was unprecedented, with some of them even calling it bizarre. CSMMU spokesman Abbas Ali said steps such as using a chartered plane to fly in the sheets were being taken for the first time. “This is the first time such foolproof arrangements are being made,” Ali told IANS. Students will get four answer sheets, of which one will be retained by the student, two copies will go to the medical university and one to the director general medical education (DGME) to avoid any scope for manipulation, said a university official who did not want to be named. The examinees will also not be allowed to take pens, pencils, copies and water bottles inside the test centre. This was decided at a meeting headed by CSMMU Vice Chancellor D.K. Gupta to review the preparations for the test. Pens will be provided to the examinees at the centre, a senior official told IANS. The use of mobile phones or any other electronic gadget within 500 metres of the centres has been banned. The examinees will also have to give their fingerprints. Their handwriting will be preserved for matching during counselling to check if the person who wrote the exam and the one appearing for counselling are the same. Invigilators will be given a code of conduct – do’s and don’ts. Those conducting the exam have been asked to note body marks and birth signs of the examinees for matching them later. A special type of ink has been brought to ensure that the fingerprints last longer than usual, said A.A. Mehndi, a CSMMU professor. IANS