Student protests in Uttar Pradesh reached their fourth day on Thursday, with demonstrators demanding a “one day, one exam” policy for the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) entrance exams.
Visuals have emerged showing large groups of students broke the barricades in Prayagraj to reach the Gate. no. 2 of the commission, opposing UPPSC’s decision to conduct exams over two days.
Meanwhile, the Prayagraj Police have claimed that some criminal miscreants infiltrated the students' protest and are trying to mislead them.
Protestors Break Barricades
The UPPSC Review Officer and Assistant Review Officer Preliminary Examinations are scheduled for December 22 and 23, while the Provincial Civil Service Preliminary Examination is set for December 7 and 8. Students are insisting that the exams be held on a single day, a practice that was previously followed but has since been abandoned.
What Is The Reasons Behind the Protests
The aspirants are protesting against the multiple shift schedule and are demanding the RO-ARO exam be held on a single day in a single shift to ensure fairness in the examination and avoid confusion.
Increased Security
In light of the protests, Uttar Pradesh police and the Rapid Action Force (RAF) have been deployed to protest sites, and an FIR has been filed against 12 individuals for vandalism related to the demonstrations.
What did UPPSC say about protests?
UPPSC Secretary Ashok Kumar mentioned regulatory and logistical challenges for holding the examination in a single shift on a single day. He said, "As per the commission's guidelines, only government institutions within a 10-km radius of the district headquarters are used as examination centres. Previously, the same students were against using private institutions as exam centres due to concerns over security and paper leaks."
Kumar further noted, "A total of 576,000 candidates have registered for the PCS exam, while centres are available for only 435,000 students across all the 75 districts. Under these circumstances, holding the exams over two days is unavoidable."
[With inputs from agencies]
