It was virtually a festival of cheating.

From the beginning till the end of the English 2nd paper exam yesterday, students wrote answers with cheating sheets beneath their answer scripts. Once done, they exchanged cheating sheets among themselves. All these happened in presence of the teachers and invigilators.

The teachers acted as facilitators. They also told some answers to students and wrote a few on blackboards.

This was the scene at Adakhola High School in Rajapur of Jhalakathi during the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent exams.

A total of 257 Business Management (BM) students under Bangladesh Technical Education Board appeared for the test in eight rooms of the school, which is being used as an examination centre for the last six years.

The examinees are from Baria Degree College, Rajapur Degree College, Rajapur Technical College and Rezaul Karim Technical College, all located in Rajapur upazila. The students of the four colleges usually take their public exams at this centre, some seven kilometres away from the upazila town.

Hearing the news of cheating, this correspondent went to the centre at 11:30am and found many teachers standing just outside the doors of the exam halls.

As soon as this correspondent walked towards a room, the teachers asked the students to hide their cheating sheets. Yet some examinees continued copying from the sheets.

When this newspaper was taking photos, a teacher tried to erase the answers he wrote on the blackboard in room-8.

Seeking anonymity, some students said they paid the teachers during the form fill-up in order to avail the “facility”.

“Everything is managed here,” said am examinee of Baria Degree College, after the exam.

Another examinee said he was taking the exam for a certificate which was essential for his promotion.

An official from the local administration was tasked with overseeing the exams by the upazila nirbahi officer. The official, who has magistracy power, was seen sitting idle in the office room most of the time during the exam hours.

Rezaul Karim, centre secretary, refused to make any comment on the issue.

“How did you get my phone number? What would you do with the information?” he questioned and hung up the phone.

Despite making repeated attempts, this newspaper could not reach ABM Sadiqur Rahman, upazila nirbahi officer of Rajapur, over the phone for his comments.