NTS Conducts Tests Of 600 Departments, Universities: CEO

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Jan, 2017 ) : National Testing Service (NTS) has conducted tests of 600 private and public institutions, universities and divisions since its inception.

Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NTS, Dr Sherzada Khan said the NTS was a public sector non-profitable body which conductged tests for recruitment and admission in educational institutions to uphold merit.

He said the institution had conducted 10.50 million tests transparently and had a 300 staff of subject specialists who were affiliated with renowned educational institutions. He said the NTS was conducting tests on demand of concerned departments and divisions.

It was mandate of the institutions to fill the vacant seats according to a merit keeping in view the written test results of NTS. He rejected the allegations that NTS was minting money from poor students in the name of conducting tests for recruitment in government and private departments.

He said the NTS was a non-profit organization which was registered under Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and was strictly following the merit in testing system.

Responding to a question, the CEO said the NTS had received 48,674 applications in 2015-16 for various posts of BPS-7 to 16 in the Utility Stores Corporation (USC).

The NTS received the applications directly and in pursuance of the recruitment policy framed by the Establishment Division, conducted initial screening tests on March 27, 28 and 29, 2015, he added.

He said the body charged Rs 450 per candidate for BS-16 posts and Rs 400 for all others. The initial screening test was qualified by 3,165 candidates against 633 posts of BS-7 to BS-16, who were to be interviewed subsequently.

He said due to some financial constrain the USC had not filled the vacant posts which was not NTS' fault. To another question, he said that Higher education Commission (HEC) don't have a mandate to establish its own testing body.

He alleged that HEC had established an its own testing body in the name of Educational Testing Service (ETC) which was sheer violation of its article of memorandum. Sherzada Khan said the Higher Education Commission (HEC) was a regulatory body and it should focus on its prime responsibilities rather establishing testing body.