CAT aspirants left out again

Ravikant Narayan could not take the Common Admission Test (CAT) on his scheduled date of November 29. He was not rescheduled during the entire duration of the first phase of the entrance test so when the IIMs announced a second phase, he was elated.

Ravikant Narayan could not take the Common Admission Test (CAT) on his scheduled date of November 29. He was not rescheduled during the entire duration of the first phase of the entrance test so when the IIMs announced a second phase, he was elated.

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The final year IIT student wanted to pursue the post graduate management programme and then take up a job of his choice. But his name did not figure in the 10,000 aspirants for CAT’s second phase scheduled on January 30 and 31.

After many frantic calls to the helpline and e-mails, he was told that nothing could be done. Narayan now plans to take up a job and try for the IIMs next year.

“I have little option. I wanted to finish my education before taking up a job,” said the 22-year-old.

Narayan is not alone. Several aspirants are complaining that their names have not figured on the second phase list.

The CAT went online for the first time last November and was marred by a virus attack. About 2.4 lakh aspirants had registered for the test but all could not take it so the online test was extended into a second phase.

PaGaLGuY.com, a leading management online forum, is flooded with complaints from aspirants who have either been compulsorily asked to do the test again or have been left out despite qualifying in the criteria put up on the website.

Vikram Mukhi, another IIT student, had several technical glitches during his test and was hoping that the second phase will allow him to take the test properly.

“Rigorous correspondence with the IIM helpline and requests to go through the video footage of the computer lab in which my test was conducted to confirm my claim that I am eligible for a retest, have been of no use,” said Mukhi.