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UPTET paper leak: Exam Regulatory Authority secretary suspended
Updhyay will remain attached to the office of director (basic education), UP, in Lucknow during the period of his suspension, informed a senior official of the ERA
PRAYAGRAJ Taking cognisance of the UP Teachers’ Eligibility Test (UPTET) -2021 paper leak, the state government on Tuesday suspended secretary of Prayagraj-headquartered Exam Regulatory Authority (ERA), UP, Sanjay Kumar Upadhyay with immediate effect.
UPTET is a state-level exam conducted once a year to enable candidates to gain eligibility to teach primary (classes 1-5) and upper primary (classes 6-8) classes in schools of UP government. The responsibility of conducting the exam lies with the ERA.
Updhyay will remain attached to the office of director (basic education), UP, in Lucknow during the period of his suspension, informed a senior official of the ERA. Prima facie, he has been found negligent in ensuring smooth, fair and copying-free conduct of UPTET-2021, as per the order issued by secretary (basic education) Anakima Singh in this regard, the official added.
According to the order dated November 29, a copy of which is with HT, failure to ensure smooth conduct of the exam and failing to maintain confidentiality in this regard led to the cancellation of UPTET-2021.
UPTET for the primary level was to be held at 2,554 centres across UP between 10am and 12.30pm followed by test for upper primary level from 2.30pm to 5pm at 1,754 centres on November 28. A total of 12,91,628 candidates were registered to appear in the test in the first shift in the state while 8,73,553 were registered to appear in the second shift.
However, the state government was forced to cancel it after the recovery of question papers from 26 people arrested in five districts of the state hours before the exam.
The state government has made clear that the exam would now be conducted within a month and the examinees would not have to pay extra fees or fill fresh forms for it.
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath had issued a stern warning against those involved in the UPTET paper leak, saying National Security Act and the Gangsters Act will be invoked against the culprits.
