The issue of cut-off score for the preliminary examination of Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) has come to the forefront since the preliminary exam of 45th BCS.

But the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (BPSC) has said it does not publish everything.

The constitutional body has put forth some logic behind their decision.

Cut-off score is the mark that decides whether a candidate would fail or pass in the exam. For example, if the cut-off score in any exam is 120, then any candidate getting the number would pass in the exam.

When Prothom Alo asked PSC chairman Md Sohorab Hossain how they decide the cut-off score, he said the score does not remain same. PSC members take into consideration various issues regarding a certain BCS exams before fixing the cut-off marks.

About the publication of the score, Sohorab Hossain said, “We do not want to publish this score. We do not publish this thinking that there could be different types of complexities.”

Several BPSC sources said the issues that are taken into consideration to fix the cut-off score include how many candidates in cadre and non-cadre posts to be appointed, how well the candidates could answer to the questions, and the number of candidates.

The cut-off score could be different if the government directs to complete recruitment process in a short time, said another source from PSC.

The candidates, however, demanded publishing the cut-off score. Several candidates told that the BPSC should keep a fixed cut-off score otherwise it creates confusion.

They said sometimes they see someone passing scoring 115 while another time someone could not pass in the preliminary exam even after getting 120 marks. PSC should reveal the cut-off score so that nothing like this happens, the candidates added.