Coronavirus Pandemic: Admission criteria for NITs relaxed

New Delhi: The HRD ministry on Thursday announced a relaxation in the admission criteria for NITs and centrally funded technical institutions in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, doing away with the requirement of minimum 75 per cent marks in Class 12 board exams.

"Due to prevailing circumstances, Central Seat Allocation Board has decided to relax the eligibility criterion for admissions to NITs and other centrally funded technical institutions," Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' tweeted.

"JEE Main 2020 qualified candidates will now only need to obtain a passing certificate in class XII examination irrespective of the marks obtained," he further said. For admissions in NITs and other centrally funded technical institutions, apart from qualifying the JEE-Main, the eligibility was to secure a minimum of 75 per cent marks in Class 12 board exams or rank among the top 20 percentile in their qualifying examinations.

The Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)-Mains, which has been postponed twice, will now be held from September 1-6.