The Department of Pre-University Education (DPUE) is caught in a fresh controversy as the daughter of one of its officials is slated to write the II PU examinations in March 2018. This is in violation of the department’s own rule that an employee cannot be involved in exam-related work if his or her child is sitting for the test that year.
This has caused anxiety among department officials as they feel the father will be privy to examination material. The official in question — M.N. Katti — works as the personal secretary to the director of DPUE. Mr. Katti was earlier posted in the academic section.
“Although the director is responsible for carrying out all the confidential work related to the exams, the personal secretary get access to emails, letters and other confidential information that needs to be passed on to [him]. So merely transferring him out of the examination section will serve no purpose,” an official in the department said. He added that a group of officials would approach the director next week and urge her to transfer Mr. Katti out of the section as the exam work will begin in December.
Mr. Katti said that he has already informed the director that his daughter would be appearing for the II PU exam and that he would not be involved in any exam-related activity. A senior official in the department seconded this.
All the exam processes are under close scrutiny after the Chemistry paper was leaked twice in March 2016. A high-level committee was formed to look into reforms for the March 2017 exams.
