PUDUCHERRY: The written examination for 41 Village Administrative Officer (VAO) posts under the Revenue and Disaster Management Department was held on Sunday across 86 centres in Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam.
Of the 32,016 candidates who had applied, 19,128 appeared for the test while 12,888 remained absent, recording an overall attendance of 59.75%. Several centres were reported to be nearly empty due to the high rate of absenteeism.
The exam was conducted in two sessions — from 10 am to 12 noon and from 2.30 pm to 4.30 pm. Puducherry accounted for 68 centres, including Thiruvalluvar Government Women’s School, VOC Government School, Jeevanandham Government School, Manimekalai Government School, Bharathidasan Women’s College, Kanchi Mamunivar Postgraduate Centre and a few private institutions. In Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, the exams were held in 10, two and six centres respectively.
Puducherry exam control officer Pankaj Kumar Jha, along with officials Jayanth Kumar Ray, Muhammad Ahsan Abid, A Vikranth Raja and District Collector A Kulothungan, monitored the process in Puducherry. In Karaikal, officials R Kesavan and M Pooja supervised the centres, while in Mahe and Yanam, R Smitha and Choudhary Muhammad Yasin were in charge.
Candidates were allowed entry from 8 am. Gates closed at 9.30 am for the first session and 2 pm for the second, with latecomers barred from entry. Security arrangements included frisking with metal detectors, verification of hall tickets and photo IDs, and biometric attendance recording.
Carrying handbags, mobile phones, Bluetooth devices, headphones, calculators, pen drives and other electronic gadgets into the halls was strictly prohibited. Jammer devices were installed to block mobile and internet services, while CCTV cameras were placed in every exam hall. Police personnel were deployed at all centres to ensure smooth conduct of the test.