A one-hour delay at a private university in Gharuan, Punjab, during the morning session of the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced 2025 caused significant anxiety among students and parents on Sunday, May 18.
As reported by The Times of India, the disruption, which occurred in Block B-3 of the exam centre, raised concerns about the readiness of private institutions to host high-stakes national-level exams.
The exam, conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur this year, was scheduled to begin at 9 am. However, candidates at the Gharuan centre reported that the exam didn’t start until around 10 am.
Students and parents attributed the delay to a sluggish biometric verification process and poor organisation on the part of the exam centre staff.
“There was no proper system in place. The biometric entry started very late, and the staff was clearly overwhelmed,” said Bhupinder Singh, a parent, speaking to TOI.
“This lack of coordination right before one of the most important exams in their lives was extremely stressful,” he added,
Many students said the delay disrupted their mental focus, which is crucial in a high-pressure exam like JEE Advanced that determines admission to the prestigious IITs. Several also pointed out that they were not kept informed about the cause of the delay while waiting anxiously to begin the test.
The disruption had a knock-on effect on the day’s schedule. The first session, originally set to end at 12 noon, stretched until 1 pm. With the second paper scheduled for 2.30 pm, students were left with barely 30 minutes to rest, eat, and regroup.
Parents expressed anger over the mismanagement and have called for accountability. Some demanded that IIT Kanpur consider awarding grace marks or some form of relief to students impacted by the delay.
“This kind of negligence can affect a student’s performance and confidence. We expect better preparedness and monitoring when private universities are chosen as exam centres for such critical tests,” said another concerned parent.
As of now, there has been no official statement from IIT Kanpur regarding the incident.
