The nation-wide lockdown due to the spread of the novel coronavirus has left students uncertain with regards to the examinations which were to be held this year. While Engineering and medical aspirants had had their entrance examinations scheduled in the month of April and May, they were postponed until further notice. However, the government today, announced the dates for conducting the Joint Entrance Exams (JEE) and National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).
While interacting with students in a webinar, Human Resource and Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal said that the JEE-Mains exams will be held from July 18-23 and the JEE-Advanced exams will be held in August. He also announced that the medical entrance exam NEET will be held on July 26. Over 15 lakh students across the country have registered for NEET this year, which is the entrance exam for medical colleges in India, and more than 9 lakh students have registered for JEE Mains, the entrance exam for engineering colleges except the IITs.
Pokhriyal also added that the government is yet to announce the dates for CBSE classes 10 and 12 board examinations, and that the students can expect the finalised dates soon.
The Ministry of Human Resource and Development has further announced that the students can change their examination centres if required. This facility has been provided after considering that several students have travelled to different districts and states since the commencement of the lockdown.
