Tough steps being taken to eradicate 'nakal mafia': Dinesh Sharma

New Delhi [India], Mar 29 (ANI): In the wake of incidents of mass cheating being reported from Uttar Pradesh, Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma on Wednesday said that adequate steps are being taken to eradicate the 'nakal mafia' from the state. Asserting that a lot of changes are needed to be done in the field of education in Uttar Pradesh, Sharma told ANI, "The cheating nexus needs to be eradicated. I have spoken with all the District magistrates and SSP's and I have directed them to impose section 144 within 100 meters of the examination centre. I have also directed them to bring out the names of people who are a part of the Nakal mafia, so that they can be interrogated, punished and sent to jail." "I have also instructed the DIOS to keep a tough vigil and debar the colleges where any such probability is felt and change their examination centers.toughtsteps will be taken to eradicate this menace," he added. The English Examination for Class 10 of the Uttar Pradesh Board was postponed at two centres after an incident of mass cheating surfaced. Describing the incident as unfortunate, Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar said that it reflected a downfall of the education system. "This is unacceptable, compromising on merit and such thing prevailing is absolutely unacceptable. Country can't make progress in such atmosphere, and therefore, we will take this issue up with the concerned government, as after all, it is there domain. We will definitely have some concrete action plan after discussing with the state," Javadekar told ANI. The government has issued helpline number to register cheating related complaints in order to check incidents of cheating in Uttar Pradesh Board Exam. Complaint can be registered on WhatsApp number 9454457241. (ANI)