NEW DELHI: Three major changes done by Joint Admission Board (JAB) of IIT-Joint Entrance Examination has not been done out of any great desire to improve the system but due to a notice from the Supreme Court on special leave petition (SLP) filed by Rajiv Kumar of IIT-Kharagpur.
Incidentally, Kumar, the first one to expose flaws in IIT-JEE, has not been credited by IIT-Kanpur, which is conducting the entrance examination this year. None of the changes announced last week are part of the admission brochure. It is believed that affidavit by IIT-Kanpur in the SC would now claim that since three major changes have been implemented, Kumar's SLP be dismissed.
The three changes - putting scanned copies of answer sheet of each candidate, announcing correct answers within 48 hours of the examination and giving marks of each candidate, qualified or not - still do not fulfil the slew of prayers that Kumar has made. For one, the demand to use pen - so that answer sheets cannot be tampered with - instead of pencil to encircle the answer scripts is not being implemented this year. It is believed that pens could be allowed from next year. But every year, the IIT that conducts JEE comes up with new set of rules and, therefore, sources said it is too early to say if the demand of use of pen would be allowed.
Kumar had made a plea that JAB be asked not to repeat same set of persons as question setters, or JEE administrators for more then two years and also to ensure strict vigilance. He had also requested that JAB be asked to discard the concept of extended merit list, and to give all-India rank to all the candidates. JAB was also asked to publish status of vacant and filled-in seats on a day-to-day basis during the counselling session for admission.
Incidentally, Kumar, the first one to expose flaws in IIT-JEE, has not been credited by IIT-Kanpur, which is conducting the entrance examination this year. None of the changes announced last week are part of the admission brochure. It is believed that affidavit by IIT-Kanpur in the SC would now claim that since three major changes have been implemented, Kumar's SLP be dismissed.
The three changes - putting scanned copies of answer sheet of each candidate, announcing correct answers within 48 hours of the examination and giving marks of each candidate, qualified or not - still do not fulfil the slew of prayers that Kumar has made. For one, the demand to use pen - so that answer sheets cannot be tampered with - instead of pencil to encircle the answer scripts is not being implemented this year. It is believed that pens could be allowed from next year. But every year, the IIT that conducts JEE comes up with new set of rules and, therefore, sources said it is too early to say if the demand of use of pen would be allowed.
Kumar had made a plea that JAB be asked not to repeat same set of persons as question setters, or JEE administrators for more then two years and also to ensure strict vigilance. He had also requested that JAB be asked to discard the concept of extended merit list, and to give all-India rank to all the candidates. JAB was also asked to publish status of vacant and filled-in seats on a day-to-day basis during the counselling session for admission.
Another important prayer of Kumar was direction to JAB that the unilateral declaration given by a candidate - behind which IIT takes refuge when challenged with irregularities in JEEs - is of no legal consequence.
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Readers' opinions (5)
Puneet (Bangalore)
52 mins ago (09:29 AM)
Filling OMR with Pen? what if you want to change your answer? Extended merit list serves a good purpose. There is no point of giving AIR to all the students. IITJEE tests all the three subjects- Physics, Chemistry & Maths. Supposedly a student is weak in a particular subject but strong in other 2 so much so that his total score is very good but does not clear individual subject cutoff, then he should not be admitted.
52 mins ago (09:29 AM)
Filling OMR with Pen? what if you want to change your answer? Extended merit list serves a good purpose. There is no point of giving AIR to all the students. IITJEE tests all the three subjects- Physics, Chemistry & Maths. Supposedly a student is weak in a particular subject but strong in other 2 so much so that his total score is very good but does not clear individual subject cutoff, then he should not be admitted.
