Covid-19: NTA announces postponement of UGC-NET exams scheduled for May

The exams, which were from December cycle, were to take place from 2-17 May. In a tweet, Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank noted that he had advised the NTA to postpone the exams.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) announced on Tuesday that the UGC-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) December 2020 cycle exam, scheduled to be held from 2-17 May, was being postponed due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation in the country, thus becoming the latest exam to be deferred or cancelled in the last one week owing to the resurgence in the number of coronavius disease cases.

(For representational purpose only) Students attempted the Jee-Adv exams on May 20 (HT Photo)

"Keeping in mind the safety and well-being of candidates and exam functionaries during Covid-19 outbreak, I have advised DG NTA to postpone the UGC-NET December 2020 cycle (May 2021) exams," Union education minister Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank tweeted on Tuesday evening. "Dear all, I request you to stay safe and follow all necessary precautions for Covid-19," Nishank added.

The exams, which were to take place in online mode, covering 81 subjects, were being postponed looking at the present situation of Covid-19, and taking into account the safety and well-being of the candidates and exam functionaries, Dr Sadhna Parashar, senior director (exams), NTA, said in a public notice.

"The revised dates for the UGC-NET December 2020 cycle (May 2021) Examination will be announced later and at least 15 days before the examination," the notice added, further advising candidates to regularly visit the official NTA websites for the latest updates.

On April 14, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) exams for class10th were cancelled while those for class 12th were postponed. Both sets of exams were scheduled for May June.

A day later, Union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan announced the postponement of the NEET-PG exams, scheduled for April 18. On April 16, the Council of Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) announced the postponement of its class 10th and 12th exams. While class 10th exams were to be held from May 4-June 7, those for class 12th commenced from April 8.

India's current tally of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) stands at 15,321,089 after 259,170 new cases were detected in the previous 24 hours, the Union ministry of health and family welfare (MoHFW) said on Tuesday morning. There were a record 1,761 related deaths as well, taking the death toll to 180,530. India has seen more than 200,000 cases for six straight days, since topping the mark for the first time on April 15.