Schools across Haryana will remain shut tomorrow, Saturday, October 21, in view of the Common Eligibility Test (CET) to be conducted by the Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC). The exam is meant for recruitment to 13,536 Group D posts in the state.
"There will be a holiday in all the schools of Haryana on Saturday due to the examination for Group D posts. The Directorate of School Education has issued instructions in this regard," said an official statement on Thursday, October 19, as mentioned in a report by PTI.
The CET Group D exam will take place on October 21 and 22 in various schools, colleges, and educational institutions in 17 districts of the state and Chandigarh, which is also an exam centre, from 10 am to 11.45 am and from 3 pm to 4.45 pm. The Haryana government has put in place stringent measures to ensure smooth conduct of the exam.
On October 19, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar presided over a high-level meeting through video conferencing with Divisional Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners, Range IGs of police and Superintendents of police to review the comprehensive arrangements for the exam. According to another statement, Haryana's Transport Minister Mool Chand Sharma said that the candidates would be provided free transportation in state government buses.
As a supportive measure, one family member accompanying female candidates will also be allowed to travel for free, he added. The candidates will also be dropped back after their exam. For this purpose, 3,000 buses of Haryana Roadways and buses of various educational institutions will be utilised. Minister Sharma advised the candidates to reach the nearest bus stand at the district or sub-division level by 7.30 am for the morning session and by 12 pm for the evening session, to avail the free services.
In the high-level meeting, Khattar issued firm directives to all officers, emphasising that recruitment based on merit was the government's primary objective. "Therefore, it is imperative that the examination proceeds without any disruptions and this responsibility falls on all of us," said an official statement quoting the chief minister.
Khattar also emphasised the need for a comprehensive revamp of the staff deployment at the exam centres to prevent incidents like paper leaks, unauthorised access, copying or impersonation. According to officials, prohibitory orders under Section 144 will be enforced within a 500-metre radius of the centres while coaching centres and stationery shops selling printing materials will remain closed on the examination day.
The CET exam will be administered by the National Testing Agency (NTA). A total of 13,75,151 candidates have registered for the exam, and nearly 3.5 lakh candidates are expected to appear for the examination during each of the two shifts, as per PTI.
