Calcutta, Jan. 18: Teachers roped in to evaluate answer scripts of this year?s higher secondary examinations will have to complete their task in three weeks from the day the papers are handed to them.

This is one of many measures the higher secondary education council has decided to enforce in the wake of a Supreme Court order, which said results of all plus-II examinations across India must be declared by June 10, every year.

School education minister Kanti Biswas today said: ?The three-week deadline for examiners already exists in the council?s rulebook, but was hardly adhered to. The government this time will ensure that they (teachers) follow the guideline. Otherwise, the council will find it difficult to meet the June 10 target for declaring the results.?

The council has convened an emergency meeting with representatives of all teachers? bodies on January 25 to chalk out its course of action.

?The representatives of teachers? organisations have been asked to submit their opinions. We are happy that each of them ? irrespective of their political affiliations ? have agreed to extend support,? Biswas said.

The 2005 exams will begin on March 22 and continue till the end of April. Officials said this year?s results would have to be published more than a month before the usual.

?To ensure perfection, we have decided to allot lesser answer scripts for correction to the teachers. We will not overburden them, but give them only as many answer scripts as is possible to check correctly within three weeks,? an official said.

The council, however, has been dogged by teachers? refusal to become examiners and it is common for one teacher to be saddled with several hundred papers. Last year?s HS results were out on July 27.

A council official said more examiners will be engaged this time. Last year, 19,000 examiners were engaged to correct answer scripts of about 400,000 examinees. ?Over 3,000 additional examiners are likely to be engaged this time,? said an official.

According to government rules, ordinary graduates are eligible to examine Madhyamik answer scripts, but a teacher needs to be an honours graduate to correct HS papers. An official said teachers with honours degrees will be kept out of the Madhyamik fold this year.