Online Desk: Doctors in the country must be honest and sound-minded, Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Samanta Lal Sen said on Friday.

That is why he said maximum precautions were taken at all examination centres staging the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) admission tests for the 2023-24 academic year.

The health minister made these remarks while talking to journalists after inspecting examination centres at Tejgaon College and Dhaka University Arts Faculty this morning.

Among others, Medical Education and Family Welfare Division Secretary Azizur Rahman, Director General of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) ABM Khurshid Alam, BMA president Dr Mostafa Jalal Mohiuddin and Directorate General of Medical Education Director General Prof Dr Md Titu Miah were present at the time.

An electronic tracking device was put on every trunk carrying the question papers for this year’s exam, through which the activities were monitored by the Directorate.

No one, including the magistrate at each exam centre, was allowed to carry any electronic device in the examination hall. All medical coaching centres were declared shut one month before the exam.  On the day before the exam, the state intelligence agency was deployed to prevent any opportunity to leak or spread questions, or even rumours regarding questions, on social networks like Facebook, Dr Sen informed.

“We have been as careful as possible in this year’s medical entrance exam,” added the technocrat minister, explaining the need for a clean process to produce the kind of doctors the country needs.

“I want to see honest and better doctors in our country. I remained honest throughout my whole life, I want each doctor of the next generation to serve the people with honesty and transparency,” the health minister added.

The MBBS admission test for the academic year 2023-24 was held simultaneously at 44 venues of 19 examination centres of the country from 10am to 11 am.

A total of 104,374 applicants competed for 11,675 seats in the country’s medical colleges through the admission test.