NEET candidates who have been allotted exam centres in other States like Kerala are distressed over CBSE’s delay in announcing new centres within Tamil Nadu as directed by Madras High Court on April 26. With only a few days left for the exam, Sanyam Bhardwaj, Director of NEET, New Delhi, said they were yet to receive the court order.
Believing the CBSE would act promptly on the court’s direction, many candidates have already cancelled their train tickets to Kerala. NEET examinees have been frequently checking the CBSE-NEET website for updates, with no result.
Bhardwaj said, “Let us receive the order. We are taking advice from our legal advisor and then we will take action.” Several questions were asked on new centre allocation, allotment of exam centres not listed among candidates’ choices and even if there would be any announcements in the upcoming days. Bhardwaj did not reply to any of the questions and refrained from comment.
The director’s public notice after allotting centres to candidates and hall tickets made available on the website, said, “There is no human intervention in allotment of the centres as the same is being done with the help of a computer. No change in the centre or centre city could be done in any case because all the arrangements for the examination have been made by the CBSE. A centre or city cannot be changed.”
As far as candidates from Tamil Nadu are concerned, there are many who hail from rural areas and would have to travel a long distance, which would have financial implications. M Kumar, who is from an underprivileged background, lamented, “There is a lot of confusion and anxiety over this issue. As I was given a centre in Ernakulam district in Kerala, my father somehow booked to-and-fro train tickets. Hearing of the High Court’s direction, we cancelled the tickets and now, we do not know what to do.”
Sethuram, the founder of a city-based coaching centre, said, “Students are very confused. They do not know whether the exam centre would be changed or left as it is. A public notice from the CBSE on this issue would help lessen exam anxiety.” Educationist Prince Gajendra Babu said the CBSE must take immediate steps to update NEET candidates on whether exam centres would be changed or not.
