Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) has cancelled the 10th Level Common Preliminary Examination for four posts after an error led to the distribution of the wrong question paper at an examination centre in Alappuzha.

The afternoon session, which was scheduled for around 1.69 lakh candidates, has been cancelled. The PSC has also annulled the morning session conducted at the affected centre in Alappuzha. A revised examination date will be announced later.

The mix-up occurred at Lajanathul Muhammadiya School in Alappuzha, where candidates appearing for the morning session were mistakenly given the question paper meant for the afternoon batch.

The error came to light after candidates who completed the morning examination at Alappuzha centre discussed the paper with those who wrote the exam at other centres.

The examination was being conducted in two sessions across around 200 centres for recruitment to multiple posts, including Last Grade Servants in various Companies, Boards and Corporations, Storeman in the Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC and Lower Division Clerk (LDC) in the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (through both direct recruitment and by-transfer appointment).

The question papers for both the morning and afternoon sessions had been delivered to examination centres together on Saturday morning. The question paper packets were packed in different coloured covers, but the wrong set was reportedly handed over to candidates.

Cost of one exam estimated at ₹3.40 crore

Kerala PSC spends ₹200 per candidate to conduct an OMR-based examination. At that rate, conducting one phase of the 10th Level Common Preliminary Examination costs around ₹3.40 crore.

While Saturday morning's examination was not cancelled except at the Alappuzha centre, all arrangements made for the statewide afternoon session went unused following its cancellation.

Around 200 examination centres and more than 8,500 invigilators had been readied for the afternoon examination.