Daily Times

Certain changes in rules of Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) in 2012 were responsible for depriving some candidates of CSS examination to qualify and also in subsequent years the whole passing percentage declines considerably.

Before changes in the rules of CSS examination, the procedure was that every candidate have to pass the compulsory subjects with 40 percent marks and 33 percent in optional subjects and the overall percentage should be at least 50 percent. There was also an exemption, according to which if a candidate gets less than 33 percent marks in any optional paper but the overall aggregate percentage was 50 percent or above, that candidate was considered qualified for interview. However, in 2012 the rules were changed and any candidates who get less than 33 percent marks in any optional subject would be considered as failed. The changes in rules of the FPSC for CSS examination deprived some candidates to consider for further process.

These deliberations were made in Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat, which held today in parliament house while Senate Talha Mehmood was on chair. The committee expressed serious reservations over changes in rules of FPSC for CSS examination. Even Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan also raised question over the competent authority who allowed changes in rules. The minister hinted that proper approval from cabinet and PM was not taken and in case the Cabinet gave approval then it would be very bad. He assured the committee that if wrong doing was committed in the past by any government or department, it would be rectified. Secretary FPSC told the committee that due to change in rules about 11 CSS candidates were deprived from qualifying the examination in 2013. Similarly four person in 2014, another four person in 2015, and some others in subsequent years were affected from changes in rules.

The committee directed Secretary FPSC to provide details over changes in rules, either legal or illegal and who allowed changes in the rules in next meeting. The committee also expressed serious concerns over not following constitutional quota system for provinces and special areas. The committee was informed that there were some violations of quota system over appointment from grade one to sixteen in federal departments. Senator Sikandar Mindhro informed the committee Balochistan and Sindh provinces were not provided proper quota in federal departments while Punjab was given extra quota. This was injustice with small provinces at the cast of big province. The senators presented some date according to which proper quota was not provided to Balochistan.

State Minister Ali Mohammad Khan assured the committee that quota of one province could not be given to others even the people of concerned province could not available or not qualify the test interview. Over regularization of nine doctors in Cardiac Center’s PIMS Hospital, Chairman Committee Talha Mehmood ordered to stop the FPSC for taking examination of these 9 doctors till the government find amicable solution of the matter. The committee was informed some doctors already regularized but these 9 doctors were asked to appear in FPSC examination and also they (9 doctors) would be given extra marks.

Published in Daily Times, March 14^th 2019.