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Student support group writes to Centre over delay in NEET, JEE Mains
The Student Islamic Organisation (SIO), an organisation that works for students across the country, on Tuesday sent a letter to the Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal, demanding a timetable for all competitive exams at the earliest
A student support organisation has reached out to Union education minister to address the ambiguity over the conduct of Joint Entrace Examination (JEE) Mains and National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) (NEET UG).
The Student Islamic Organisation (SIO), an organisation that works for students across the country, on Tuesday sent a letter to the Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal, demanding a timetable for all competitive exams at the earliest.
Of the four sessions of JEE Mains for entrance to undergraduate engineering courses across the country, two were completed in February and March respectively while the April and May sessions had to be postponed. Similarly, NEET-UG, the all-India pre-medical test, was scheduled for the first week of August but the examination authority is yet to confirm the date, adding to the anxiety of aspirants.
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“In view of the seriousness of the situation, unprecedented measures will have to be considered to ensure that the important task of examination and assessment can be carried out without posing a risk to the mental and physical well-being of an entire generation of students,” said a statement released by SIO. It suggests that apart from adhering to strict Covid protocols at all exam centres, there’s also a need to increase the number of examination centres. “The aim should be to reduce the number of students at each centre to ensure maximum social distancing,” said Mohammad Salman Ahmad, SIO national president.
SIO, established in 1982, is a student support organisation fighting for the rights of students across the country. They were the first to demand that all-India exams such as NEET be conducted in regional languages as well. That led to NEET being held in 11 languages, including English, Hindi, Marathi, and Urdu.
With no clear information on the status of competitive exams yet, student groups have also approached the national examination body with suggestions on how these exams could be conducted without further delay.
“Last year, admissions to professional courses started in November and went on till January this year because of the delay in conducting all-India entrance tests. We hope the authorities don’t plan to repeat the same mistakes this year as well,” said Omkar Khedekar, a class 12 student who has signed an online petition, along with many others, to avoid delay in conducting examinations.
Delay in the decision on class 12 evaluation for Maharashtra state board students is also adding to the anxiety of students opting for professional undergraduate courses.
Earlier this year, rising Covid-19 cases forced all state and national school boards to scrap the class 10 and 12 board exams. While the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Council of Indian Secondary Certificate Examinations (CISCE) have announced a formula-based grading system, Maharashtra state board is yet to announce their stand.
“While both the CBSE and the CISCE have announced their evaluation criteria... We have decided to further study this before announcing something for our (HSC) students,” said a senior official from the state school education department.
