The State government is re-evaluating its inclination towards scrapping the 50% weightage given to Class 12 marks in the KEAM entrance examinations for admissions to engineering and pharmacy courses.
In-principle approval had been granted for the move on the basis of a proposal submitted by the Commissioner for Entrance Examinations (CEE). However, the government now fears the arrangement could work against meritorious students for various reasons.
The mark assessment process finalised for Class 12 CBSE and ICSE students is also believed to have prompted the rethink. A presumption that the results could be declared through a process of lenient evaluation had led the government to seriously consider dropping the Class 12 weightage this year.
Higher Education Minister R. Bindu, who has been receiving numerous calls from anxious students lately, said reverting to the earlier system of considering marks obtained in the entrance examination alone could spark complaints.
“While there are students who supported and opposed the proposal, many high-performing students who have been unable to enrol for entrance coaching programmes feared their higher education prospects could be hit. Such social aspects will have to be factored in while taking a call on the issue,” Dr. Bindu pointed out.
She said a fair decision would be taken after assessing the Class 12 results in a manner that ensured none were adversely affected. CBSE officials are learnt to have assured the Higher Education Department that the results will be declared this month.
The office of the CEE has been contemplating the possibility of conducting the entrance examination in the first week of August. The examination, which had been scheduled to be held on July 24, was postponed to avoid a clash of dates with the JEE-Main examinations. Discussions were underway to finalise a feasible date when the proposed centre in Mumbai, New Delhi and Dubai were available.
