JEE Main 2023: NCPCR, parents reach out to NTA over exam dates

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights(NCPCR) has referred a student complaint to National Testing Agency(NTA), against the last-minute release of the JEE Main timetable.

The notice also speaks against reinstating the 75% eligibility criteria, which is being considered unfair by those students who are reappearing for JEE Main and attempting Class 12 boards while the rule was not in place. “The final decision can only be taken by the National Testing Agency,” said Priyank Kanoongo, chairperson of NCPCR.

To discuss the complications faced by these decisions, three students along with representatives from the parent association visited the NTA officials to discuss the course of JEE Main 2023. “We were told that IIT Guwahati was the body that insisted on bringing back the eligibility criteria of 75% in Class 12 boards, the NTA asked us to approach them to contest this decision,” said Pradeep Rawat, founder of Gurgaon Parent Representation.

These mandates were previously removed for JEE Main when the COVID -19 pandemic forced students to attend colleges online. Several engineering aspirants who performed poorly on both, the board and JEE Main, also dropped out of the JEE counselling process to retake the nationwide exam. The reinstatement of this rule at the last minute has eliminated these second-timers from the race due to their poor board marks from previous years.

“In case there are any clashes with the dates of board exams and the JEE, the NTA officials suggested that the state boards will have to be the ones changing their schedule since JEE is a nationwide test,” said Pradeep.

JEE Main 2023 is to take place in two slots in 2023, students can attempt the exam in both January and April sessions, and the best of these two scores will be calculated.