JEE Main, NEET new exams not yet to be released. (Representational image)
Even as the National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced to share the fresh dates of engineering and medical college entrance exams on April 15 along with the admit cards, the same will not be available on the said date. Here is why: First, at the time of the announcement, the lockdown was to end by April last week which now has been extended till May 3.
Secondly, the NTA had sought a final reply from candidates on which city they wish to appear for exams from, which is their exam centers. The last date to change the exam center details in the JEE and NEET applications was April 14 which has now been extended till May 3. The admit cards cannot be released till the venues are finalized
The exam center data will be compiled and setas and centers will be allotted. As admit cards have the exam city and center details, the same is expected to be delayed.
Thirdly, the coronavirus pandemic is yet to controlled in India. The number of people infected with the virus has gone over 10,000 in India. The NTA in an earlier notice had stated that even though academic calendars are important, the health of citizens including students is more important. Thus to avoid any huge gathering, including ones at computer centers, the release will be delayed.
Going by previous years’ trend, the admit cards are released 15 days prior to the exams. Because of the same reasons, the exam dates are also expected to be announced later.
The date of exams, hopefully, will still remain the same. The JEE Main ‘April’ session and NEET UG 2020 can be expected to be held by May-end, as declared earlier. For JEE Main, over 9 lakh are expected to appear while for NEET 2020, nearly 16 lakh have registered.
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