The 41st Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations are going be held today (Friday). Nearly half a million candidates are scheduled to sit for the exams.
Earlier, the High Court has cleared the way for the authorities concerned to hold the exams on the scheduled time, rejecting a writ petition filed by some BCS candidates seeking postponement of the BCS exams due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the recent surge in infections and fatalities.
The HC bench of Justice Md Khasruzzaman and Justice Md Mahmud Hassan Talukder rejected the writ petition on March 16.
A group of job aspirants have demanded a postponement of the examinations worried about their health safety amid a recent spike in Covid-19 cases. They formed human chains and held other programmes in the capital in favour of their demand.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) fixed March 19 for the 41st BCS preliminary exams. PSC chairman Md Sohrab Hossain said that the BCS exams will be held through maintaining hygiene guidelines strictly. Candidates have to follow the hygiene rules from the time of entry to the time of exit, he added.
“We have given 11-point instructions. Everyone has to come to the centre wearing a mask and can pass inside by having their temperature measured. If someone's temperature is high, they will be taken to a separate room. Seats have been arranged according to distance,” said PSC member Shahjahan Ali Mollah.
As many as 475,000 job seekers have applied for the 41st BCS against 2,166 cadre posts. Preliminary examinations are scheduled to be held in eight divisional cities--Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Khulna, Rangpur, Sylhet, Barishal and Mymensingh. Among the 41st BCS candidates, about 211,000 are from Dhaka, while about 37,000 from Rajshahi, 35,000 from Chattogram, 32,000 from Rangpur, 28,000 from Mymensingh, 16,000 from Sylhet, and 12,000 from Barishal.
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Among the 351 centres, there are many centres where 3,000-4,000 candidates will sit for the exam.
The two-hour exam will be held from 10:00am to 12:00pm. Information regarding exam venues, seat plans, and other instructions will be available at the BPSC website: www.bpsc.gov.bd.