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In the wake of heavy rainfall in several areas in Kerala, the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday postponed the CUET-UG exam, according to officials. This development comes just as the second phase of CUET-UG examination got under way in the rest of the country and nine cities abroad on Thursday.
The examination is scheduled to continue until August 6 and nearly 6.8 lakh candidates had registered for the second phase of the CUET-UG exam, according to news agency PTI report. The report further stated that fresh dates for the exam will be announced later.
Sadhana Parashar, Senior Director, NTA said on Thursday, “due to heavy rain in many districts of Kerala in past few days, it has been brought to the notice of NTA that it may not be possible for a large number of candidates to reach the examination centre for CUET (UG) – 2022 within stipulated time as the movement will be very difficult and there may be disruption of power." Additionally, she informed, “therefore, to support the student community, it has been decided to postpone the CUET (UG) – 2022 for the candidates who will be appearing in cities of Kerala state for 04, 05 and 06 August 2022."
Meanwhile, a red alert was declared in eight districts of Kerala on Thursday by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) as rains continued to lash various parts of the state and disrupted the day-to-day lives of the people as roads got flooded or caved in and many got displaced from their homes to relief camps. IMD issued a red alert for the day in the districts of Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad and Kannur and and orange alert in remaining districts except for Thiruvananthapuram where a yellow alert is in place, according to news agency PTI report.
Notably, the inclement weather in the state resulted in water levels of various rivers, including Chalakkudi, Pampa, Manimala and Achankovil, and in various districts rising close to or crossing danger levels. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan warned residents along its banks and those in low-lying areas of Thrissur and Ernakulam districts to be cautious and to be ready to evacuate as per instructions of the authorities, the report said.
(With inputs from PTI)