A view of the 2007 labour & social welfare question paper that was repeated this year. Picture by Manik Bose

Ranchi, Dec. 1: Controversy seems to be the second name of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC).

Already grappling with charges of corruption and nepotism, the panel recorded a fresh blunder yesterday when questions in the optional second paper of labour and social welfare was found to be a repeat of last year.

The gaffe has prompted the commission to reschedule the November 30 exam. The examination will now be held on December 7 between 2pm and 5pm, JPSC secretary Alice Usha Rani Singh told The Telegraph.

“Those who set questions are given last year’s papers for reference and with a note that there should be no repeat. Besides, they are given the standard syllabus of a particular subject followed in state and other universities. There should not have been any mistake,” Singh said.

As per the norms of questing setting, the commission has its own list of teachers (normally above the rank of readers) whose names find place in the panel.

Three names are selected from the panel for a particular paper of particular examination. Thus three different questions are set. The final paper may be a mix of the three or the authorities may also decide on taking a single set of questions.

After the question paper muddle was detected yesterday, JPSC chairman Dilip Kumar Prasad and members Gopal Singh and Shanti Devi went into a huddle to find out where exactly the problem occurred.

There exists a system of screening or moderation of each and every paper.

Commission members go through the question papers before they go for printing.

“It seems to be a human error and not an act of sabotage. But we will have to probe all angles,” the secretary said. Some officials believe the printing section of the commission may have erred.

A question setter for JPSC and a retired professor of Ranchi University (RU) said it was a grave mistake on the part of JPSC.

“A detailed inquiry is needed to find out whether it is a mistake or was done intentionally,” he said, requesting anonymity.

The question paper in question carries 200 marks out of the total 1,400 for civil services mains.

This is the second time in a month that the commission has found itself on a sticky wicket.

The UGC had recently asked the governor to intervene in JPSC’s appointment of civil servants and lecturers, at least 36 of whom were said to be relatives or friends of senior JPSC members and politicians.

The Jharkhand BET-NET Association had questioned the appointment of 239 civil servants and 1,044 lecturers and petitioned Union human resources development minister Arjun Singh, seeking a vigilance or CBI probe into what it claimed were clear cases of favouritism.