Lieutenant-Governor Anil Baijal has overturned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s decision to postpone the NEET, JEE tests in Delhi, government sources said.
According to the sources, Mr. Baijal’s decision to allow the exams to be conducted in the city as per the schedule in September was conveyed to the Delhi government on Saturday.
The matter was broached at a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on August 19, following which a file related to it was moved by the Delhi government’s Revenue Department.
The file, said the sources, contained the Revenue Department’s suggestion that the exams be postponed in the interest of the students. It was signed by Mr. Kejriwal who decided against holding the two examinations in view of the conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was, however, overturned by the L-G who gave the go-ahead for the exams to be held according to the schedule, said the sources.
Sisodia letter
Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia had written to Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ on Wednesday, urging him to postpone the examinations given the pandemic situation.
“Our students are our future. They are being told that all arrangements are being made to ensure their safety from the coronavirus at the centres. These claims sound good, but we have thousands of examples where people have been infected despite taking several precautions,” Mr. Sisodia had written.
“Despite the risk, if we still go ahead, we will be risking the lives of over 28 lakh students,” he had written in the letter.
