On Day One of JEE (Main), special arrangements at exam centres; candidates say social distancing kept

The country’s most competitive test for engineering aspirants, the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE), started on Tuesday with a host of arrangements, the likes of which were never seen before.

Staggered entry and exits; temperature checks; face masks and hand sanitisers at the ready; contact-less frisking; and seats placed at a distance of five to six metres from each other -- the country’s most competitive test for engineering aspirants, the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE), started on Tuesday with a host of arrangements, the likes of which were never seen before.

JEE Mains aspirants exit the examination centre at Eye on Digital Zone in Sector 62, Noida, India, on Tuesday, September 01, 2020. (Photo: Sunil Ghosh / Hindustan Times)

The JEE is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) to carry out admissions to various undergraduate engineering and architecture courses in institutes across the country. Around 858,000 aspirants are expected to appear for JEE (Main) between Tuesday and Sunday.

“JEE was conducted smoothly all over the country (on Tuesday). I would like to thank all the state governments and officials of the NTA for the smooth conduct of the examination,” Amit Khare, secretary, higher education.

The National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) -- the entrance exam for medical courses-- will be held on September 13.

Candidates were given different time slots to report at the examination centres to avoid crowding. Immediately on entering the centres, candidates were asked to dispose of their face masks and were provided with new ones.

Puneet Kaushal,18, a resident of Haryana’s Rewari district, appeared for the Bachelors of Architecture (BArch) exam at a centre in Vivek Vivar. He had travelled to Delhi on Sunday on a Haryana roadways bus. “After giving me a new mask, they checked my temperature and asked me to sanitise my hands. Then they checked my admit card using a barcode reading machine, to avoid contact, and told me the room number to which I had to report,” he said.

“I was again made to sanitise my hands before entering the room. An official checked our admit cards but without touching them. We were made to sit on alternate seats and keep our masks on. It was a very different experience. After we finished the test, we were asked to leave the room one by one and were made to sanitise our hands before leaving the premises,” he said. Kaushal will appear in the BTech entrance exam on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, only tests for BArch and Bachelor of Planning courses were conducted. A vast majority of JEE candidates will appear for exams from Wednesday onwards when BTech tests will take place.

Candidates said it will be a real challenge to maintain social distancing from Wednesday when a majority of students will take the exam.

Avyaya Sharma, 18, whose examination centre was in Rohini on Tuesday, said, “The social distancing norms were followed at the centre but when we came out after the test, there was a rush. The rush will be more on Wednesday when a large number of students appear for the BTech exam. Today, several students assigned to my examination room were absent.”

Despite all the protocols being in place on Tuesday, students said they were apprehensive about their safety. Manvi Vats, 17, a resident of Naraina, said, “Everything went well but there was still some apprehension in our minds. The anxiety of the exam and the prevailing (Covid-19) situation made everything different. I just want to reach home as soon as possible and sanitise myself. I have another exam on Wednesday and after that, I will isolate myself for at least a week.”

While the majority of students reached centres in private vehicles, some also took cabs and autos since the Delhi Metro is still not open. Shruti Mehra, 18, booked a cab to travel to her examination centre from her home at INA. “I was a little worried about taking a cab but I had no other option. The Metro is not functional and it’s unsafe to take a bus,” she said.

Many parents were seen outside the examination centres wearing masks and maintaining social distancing. Anshu Kakkar, whose daughter was appearing for the exam at a centre in Noida’s Sector 62, said, “Even though there is fear about the safety and security of our children, I am glad that the exams are happening finally. My daughter was under tremendous stress due to the delay.”

The Supreme Court had earlier rejected the plea to postpone the entrance examinations. Six Ministers of opposition-ruled states approached the Supreme Court on Friday against its order of allowing NEET and JEE Main 2020 exams despite the increasing Covid-19 cases in the country. The plea has been filled by the ministers from West Bengal (Moloy Ghatak), Jharkhand (Rameshwar Oraon), Rajasthan (Raghu Sharma), Chhattisgarh (Amarjeet Bhagat), Punjab (B S Sidhu) and Maharashtra (Uday Ravindra Sawant).