The postponement of entrance exams has opened up a new challenge for the government, as it has to work on multiple factors to streamline the various entrance exams given the issue of logistics.
Since all the entrance tests are conducted online, the government officials have to look at the availability of slots with the agency entrusted with the job. As of now, slots are available only after the first week of August and that too not at a stretch.
“Even if the court allows the government to go ahead with the tests in August or September, we will find it difficult to book slots at a stretch,” said a senior official.
“As of now, other State governments are going ahead with the tests but if they too postpone, finding dates and slots will be difficult,” he explained. “However, we will be ready to conduct the exams whenever the government asks us,” Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) chairman T. Papi Reddy said.
Will the postponement of State entrance tests cast their shadow on national entrance tests like JEE and NEET? “It is unlikely as the Central government seems to be in the mood to conduct the exams as per schedule going by its affidavit filed in the Kerala High Court where it said that arrangements would be made for Kerala students in Gulf to return to India to write JEE or NEET tests.”
This reflects the mood of the Central government, an official argued explaining that even the UPSC has announced fresh dates for Civil Services exams. “So in all probability, JEE and NEET will be held as per schedule and State students who take them have to continue their preparation,” a senior lecturer in a private college felt.
No other State government has postponed or cancelled its entrance tests as of now, an TSCHE official said, adding, “We would like to wait and see if parents approach the courts seeking postponement.”
Officials rule out cancelling the entrance exams altogether citing legal issues. “Admission to professional courses, based on Intermediate marks, is not possible as on today due to the Supreme Court judgment. Such a scenario can emerge only if all the State governments cancel the entrance tests and along with the Central government, urge the SC to keep its judgment in abeyance for this year due to the extraordinary circumstances. A national policy has to be drafted if that happens and till then, students have to continue their focus on preparations,” he said.