Delay will lead to 'zero year', say IIT heads

New Delhi: Further delay in conducting medical and engineering entrance exams NEET and JEE will lead to a 'zero academic year' and any quick alternative to the crucial exams will dilute the quality of education and have cascading effects, according to Directors of several Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).

Amid the chorus for postponement of the two exams in view of the rising COVID-19 cases, the IIT Directors appealed to students to trust the institutions conducting the exam.

"The pandemic has already disrupted the academic plans of many students and institutions and we don't see the virus going away anytime soon. We should not let this be a zero academic year as it might have consequences on the bright future of several students," said IIT Roorkee Director Ajit K Chaturvedi. He also said students and their parents need to have faith in the system.

According to Virendra Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur, "The exams have a global reputation for seeking excellence and are considered one of the toughest and prestigious examinations in the world. A quick alternative to these tests will certainly not be as gratifying as competing for this examination by all fair means". "I urge the aspirants to take it up as a challenge and show their mettle and sincerity to the world," he said.

Sarit Kumar Das, Director, IIT Ropar, who is also a member of the Joint Admission Board (JAB) of IITs, said the decision to conduct the exams in September has not been taken overnight but after due consideration.

"Does anyone have an idea how the situation is going to be after three months or five months? Even if the exam is held in September, we won't be able to start classes before the middle of November at the earliest. That itself means almost a loss of a semester. Further delay will do nothing other than loss of a year and then next year you will have two first-year batches. Are our institutions ready with the infrastructure to handle such a situation?" he asked. "There is no doubt that we are in an unprecedented health crisis due to the global pandemic and the parents' and students' concern is understandable. But we must also think about the future of our students who have been preparing for this for many years," said Sudhir K Jain, Director, IIT Gandhinagar.

TG Shriram, Director, IIT Guwahati, said, "JEE exam is held multiple times in a year and students who don't appear this time can write after six months. Keeping in mind the effort put in by students who have prepared, it is critical that the exams are conducted as scheduled. Delay in holding the exams will lead to serious repercussions for the students as well to IIT's and most of the year 2020 will be washed out".