LAHORE - Justice Ali Akbar Qureshi of the Lahore High Court has asked the intermediate boards and the educational institutions to ensure issuance of examination roll-number slips to the students and they would be liable to prosecution according to service rules and also under criminal law if they failed in this regard. The Court observed that the students should be encouraged to concentrate on their studies instead of running after roll number slips and wasting their precious time and hard earned money of their parents. The court has also required of the education boards to streamline affairs of public and private schools and colleges so as to ensure foolproof procedure regarding issuance of roll number slips to all students at least two weeks prior to commencement of the examination so that they concentrate on the studies. Justice Qureshi remarked, imparting and getting education is undoubtedly a noble task which must be fulfilled with dedication and devotion. But unfortunately certain organizations are running these institutions purely on commercial basis disregarding this fact. The Court sent copy of the order to the chief secretary as well as to all the boards of intermediate and secondary education in Punjab, directing them to strictly adhere to statutory provision of issuance of roll number slips and conduct of the examinations well in time. The Court passed this decision while disposing of a petition filed by one Mohammad Ali Shahzad, a student from Punjab College of Commerce, who had grieved that the Lahore Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education had failed to issue the roll-number slips despite the fact, he had duly submitted their admission forms and met other requirements. He alleged that the college was also not doing on its part regarding the roll-number slips. The board in reply to the petition had proposed that the students who had appeared in the examination on court's directions should be imparted education in the college without paying the fee until conclusion of their respective academic course. Executive director, Punjab Group of Colleges, Lahore undertook that the college shall not charge even a single penny from those students until the conclusion of their current academic session. As regards the other students who were given the roll number slip just a day or two before the commencement of the examination and not within the statutory period of 14 days, he stated, they need not to pay the tuition fee to the college, which comes to about 70 per cent of the total charges. Justice Qureshi observed, "As a matter of fact, the course of action adopted by the respondent institution is extremely lamentable and the state of affairs prevalent in such like institutions is highly deplorable, rather the same can be termed as sufficiently callous in its nature and character."