Telangana: Proposal sent to cease exams for manual typewriting course

A proposal to cease exams for the manual typewriting course has been sent by the Technical Education department to the State government. The proposal, if ratified, will effectively signal the end of the formal examinations on the typewriters.

Hyderabad: Manual typewriting, a skill-based course that has shaped generations of typists with a good job in the government sector, will soon pass into history.

A proposal to cease exams for the manual typewriting course has been sent by the Technical Education department to the State government. The proposal, if ratified, will effectively signal the end of the formal examinations on the typewriters.

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For decades, typewriting has not just been a skill but a gateway to job opportunities. After learning the art of striking keys with clinical precision and speed, several millions of the unemployed youth landed jobs in the government and judicial sector.

With the advent of the computer and latest technologies, the typewriting examination has slowly transitioned to the computer-based test. The State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET) has been holding the typewriting exam on typewriters and in computer-based mode.

The exam is held twice a year with the first test scheduled in July and the next one in December and about 4,000 students annually appear for the exam. Candidates appearing on the typewriter have to carry their own machine to the examination centres. Those who opt for computer-based test mode can walk into the centre and take the test.

About 350 institutions across the State are offering a six month typewriting course on typewriters with a monthly fee ranging from Rs.200 to Rs.1,000 based on location of the institution. The proposal of the technical education department to do away with the typewriting examination on typewriters did not go down well with the typewriting institutions in the State.

Telangana Recognised Typewriting, Shorthand and Computer Association president B Sateesh Babu said students’ typing speed and accuracy can only be improved on the typewriters than the computers.

Pointing out that stenographers and typists jobs were being recruited by the Staff Selection Commission and courts, he argued Telangana candidates would lose out the jobs if they abolish typewriters.

“There are issues in the software of the computer-based test. It should be rectified and given to the institutions. The government should also rethink the proposal and continue to hold the typewriting exam on typewriter and computer,” he added.