Mobile internet will be shut in a bid to prevent adoption of any unfair means by candidates.
Mobile internet services will remain suspended in Gujarat for four hours on October 16 during the clerk-level competitive examination in a bid to prevent adoption of any unfair means by candidates.
"On our request, district collectors have been asked to ban mobile internet services between 10 am and 2 pm on Sunday so that mobile phones are not used for unfair means during the written examination for the post of class IV non-Secretariat clerks and office assistants for cheating," Asit Vora, chairman of Gujarat Subordinate Service Selection Board (GSSSB) which is conducting the examination, said today.
"We are taking all precautionary measures to ensure that the examination is held without use of unfair means," Mr Vora said, adding that as many as 7.67 lakh aspirants will sit for the examination at various centres located in district headquarters across the state for around 3,000 posts.
Ahmedabad in-charge collector AB Gor said, "Collectors have been asked to take the decision to suspend mobile internet services if they think it is necessary to prevent malpractice during the examination, and we are going ahead with this."
Incidentally, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is scheduled to address a rally in Surat on October 16 after the ban period gets over.
However, Gujarat unit of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has interpreted the ban as the BJP government's "ploy" to prevent real-time relay of Mr Kejriwal's address through mobile internet devices, including live TV telecast.
"People in Gujarat as well as those outside the state are looking forward to the public address of Kejriwal, which will be his first rally ahead of 2017 state Assembly elections," AAP stated in a press release.
Though AAP claimed that the move is aimed at shutting out Mr Kejriwal, timing of his rally is given as in afternoon whereas the mobile internet services will be restored by 2 pm.