JEE/NEET aspirants braving coronavirus to take their exams

Neha Saini

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Tribune News Service

Amritsar, September 2

Atotal of 1,683 students have registered for the JEE (Main) in the city, which is being conducted this week under strict Covid-19 restrictions and guidelines. In the past two days, out of the 503 registered for the exam, 341 candidates sat for the exam. While the safety arrangements at the only examination centre in the city were proper and the exam was conducted smoothly, a number of students chose to remain absent.

Not all were in favour of postponing exams, but amid apprehensions regarding health risks in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, many students and their parents said that they initially hoped that the government would postpone the exam. Candidates sat for exams with the mandatory masks and gloves, carrying their bottles of sanitisers. The two-hour exam was a challenge with students wearing the mask and the gloves. “It was really tough to sit through the exam wearing the mask and the gloves. After a while, most students pulled down their masks, some even took it off as they faced difficulty in breathing. Also, the gloves made it difficult for students to write or do calculations and made hands sweaty. Each person was made to keep a distance of two desks between them, so social distancing norms were followed strictly inside the rooms,” said Parth Khanna, who took the JEE (Main) for Btech and BArch.

It was really tough to sit through the exam wearing the mask and the gloves. After a while, most students pulled down their masks, some even took it off as they faced difficulty in breathing. Also, the gloves made it difficult for students to write or do calculations and made the hands sweaty. Each person was made to keep a distance of two desks between them, so social distancing norms were followed strictly inside the rooms. —Parth Khanna, who took JEE (Main)

The psychological stress was another challenge that hampered the performance of many candidates. “Ever since the issue of holding the JEE/NEET exams amid the pandemic began, I had only one thought on my mind – how would I keep myself safe while taking the exam? All through the exam, I kept on noticing fellow candidates, who had their masks down and my focus was divided. In a normal setting, of course, I would have performed better,” said Gurpreet, another candidate.

The city will host over 3,000 students who have registered for NEET scheduled to be held on September 13. With six centres across the city, it will be for the first time that the NEET will be held in this format under the Covid-19 guidelines. “It will definitely be a difficult task to ensure that a large number of students stay safe and take their exam. The JEE (Mains) exam was held smoothly so far and we hope that we can achieve that with NEET as well,” said Anjana Gupta, city coordinator for JEE/NEET. She said just like JEE, NEET will also be held in two shifts – morning and afternoon. “This makes it easier to manage the candidates and maintain social distancing protocol,” she said. The examination centre for JEE is sanitised after every shift.

‘Waited for hours, told to sit for exam in next shift’

City student Aashna Ahuja, who sat for the NATA exam held for architectural courses on August 29, complained that she could not give her exam in virtual mode due to technical snag. “We were given the option of choosing to sit for the exam from home or from the certified centre. I chose to take the exam at the centre assigned as I did not want any technical complications or internet connectivity issues to affect my exam. But when I began my exam in the morning shift, I faced technical snags repeatedly as my computer screen shut down twice and later, the online test skipped several questions. I reported these to the invigilators present there and they told me to wait. After a long wait and repeated attempts to take my exam online, I was told that these technical issues could not be solved and I should take the exam in the second schedule on September 12,” said Aashna.

Frustrated and on the verge of crying, Aashna said this experience was stressful and could hamper her admission preference. “By the time the second schedule of the exam will be held, the results of the first schedule will be announced and most colleges would already have filled up the seats. It will increase the cut-off by 20 per cent and that’s an added performance pressure.” She said she had lodged a complaint with the authorities concerned regarding the matter. “But I have received no reply from them so far. Another girl from Batala had faced the similar issue that day.”