With more Intermediate students having opted for mathematics and biology courses, there is likely to be a rise in the number of candidates – around 10,000 – taking the Engineering, Agriculture and Medical Common Entrance Test (Eamcet) this year.
Around four lakh students are expected to take the test, as against the 3.90 lakh candidates who appeared last year. As per figures available with officials, around 4.30 lakh Intermediate students are in the Maths-Physics-Chemistry (MPC) stream and 1.56 lakh in the Biology-Physics-Chemistry (BiPC) stream.
Student ratioNormally, 68 to 69 per cent of MPC students appear for Eamcet’s engineering exam while 70 per cent of BiPC students appear for the medical exam.
Eamcet convenor N.V. Ramana Rao said more than four lakh candidates may take the exam this year and the competition is also likely to rise. In 2013, Intermediate MPC students numbered 4.21 lakh while in 2012 it was 4.74 lakh. The corresponding figures for the BiPC stream were 1.48 lakh and 1.78 lakh.
“The numbers are likely to increase and we will enhance the centres as required,” Prof. Rao said.
More zonesLast year, the city was divided into four zones for students’ convenience and exam centres were assigned to them in the zone of their residence – students residing in Banjara Hills were not allotted seats in Dilsukhnagar or Uppal. This would cut travel time and traffic congestion.
This year, the number of zones may be increased, Prof. Rao said. Last year, students faced difficulty in reaching centres on the outskirts. At Rs. 250, the application fee will remain the same as last year, Prof. Rao said.
OMR sheets onlineEfforts are underway to provide the OMR answer sheets on the internet as this would drive away apprehensions among parents and candidates. Till last year, candidates had to pay for a copy of their OMR answer sheet.
“This is to improve transparency as several parents come and argue on their wards’ performance. They think we are at fault. This will put end to such issues,” he said.
