India / Postpone JEE, NEET: Odisha CM writes to Education Minister

New Delhi: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday wrote to Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ demanding postponement of NEET 2020 and JEE Main 2020 exams. The Joint Entrance Examination Main and the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate are scheduled to be conducted in September.

“In view of the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the country, it would be highly unsafe and perilous for the students to appear in these tests,” Mr Patnaik said.

In a letter to Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, the chief minister said, there are over 50,000 aspirants from Odisha for the NEET and JEE (Main) this year.

"However, the NTA has opened examination centres for the said tests in only seven townships of the state," he said.

Around 40,000 candidates from the state have registered for JEE Main 2020. The National Testing Agency, or NTA, has opened exam centres in seven townships of Odisha to conduct the two entrance exams.

Mr Patnaik informed that transportation in the state has been disrupted due to frequent lockdown enforced by different district administrations as an attempt to stop the spread of COCVID-19. "Besides, as frequent lockdowns are being enforced by the district administrations due to sudden rise of COVID-19 cases locally, local transportation too gets disrupted," he said.

“Odisha has got vast tribal pockets having geographically inaccessible areas...the students of these areas may be deprived of appearing in these tests, as they will have to travel long distances to come to the examination centres,” Mr Patnaik said in his letter to the Education Minister.

"In view of the above, it is requested that the ensuing JEE (Main) and NEET examinations scheduled to be held in the first fortnight of September, 2020 may be postponed to a later date to ensure the safety and security of the students," the chief minister said.

The Chief Minister further added that NTA should be directed to open JEE Main 2020 and NEET 2020 test centres in all the 30 districts so that students have to travel for maximum 2-3 hours to for exams and can go back to their homes the same day.

Students across the country have been demanding a further postponement of JEE Main 2020 and NEET 2020 exams.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday took a dig on the central government and urged it to listen to the “Students’ Ke Mann Ki Baat” about NEET, JEE exams.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has also recently asked for a further postponement of the two entrance exams.

Bihar’s Chirag Paswan And Tejashwi Yadav had previously posted on social media about the unfavourable conditions of conducting JEE Main 2020 and NEET 2020 examinations amid COVID-19 and the flood situation in the state.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio, had suggested alternative arrangements for admission to engineering and medical programmes as conducting exams amid a pandemic is not favourable.