There has been a complete lack of sensitivity by the Central Board of Secondary Education, the judiciary and the political class in the issue of allocation of examination centres for students from Tamil Nadu who have since appeared for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). This is an extremely important examination that will decide the course of their lives. The last minute and arduous journeys that were forced upon the students to faraway and new places are sure to have raised their already high anxiety levels. It is unfair to students to place them in a disadvantageous position due to the poor organisational skills of those who matter in the CBSE. It is unfortunate that the judiciary did not to come to the rescue of the students. The CBSE appears to be getting embroiled in one controversy after another, putting the student community under tremendous stress. Something is rotten in Delhi and a high-level committee needs to be appointed to go into the workings of the examination board.
N. Ramakrishnan,
Chennai
It has been a series of blows against the student community if one looks at the way NEET has been conducted so far. After the confusion in 2017, about its scope, the problem this year, over allocation of centres, is nothing but a case of abject mismanagement by the CBSE. Students already have their plate full after the examination paper leaks and re-examinations. The reason of not having enough centres in Tamil Nadu, for instance, is unacceptable. There are hundreds of private academic institutions whose premises could have been used to conduct the test.
Tilak Subramanian V.,
Kunjibettu, Udupi, Karnataka
While there is already resentment in Tamil Nadu on the necessity of NEET, the allotment of centres to applicants from Tamil Nadu to far-flung States such as Rajasthan and even Sikkim has only added fuel to the fire.
Did no one, and this includes the judiciary, think of the travails of the students travelling at the eleventh hour, over such long distances? They were already stressed preparing for an all-India examination. It might be a fact that the allotments were made using software, but how is it that no State other than Tamil Nadu was affected? The Board should have opened examination centres commensurate with the number of applicants. The only silver lining is that the Tamil Nadu government, many non-governmental organisations and countless kind-hearted individuals tried to help the hapless students.
Suryanarayanan S.,
Chennai
This is perhaps the gloomiest situation I have come across in my career as an academic, now 77, and with teaching experience spanning nearly five decades. It is unheard of in the annals of academic history across the world to exhibit this kind of abject indifference and despicable callousness towards young students. It is cruelty of the worst form to ask them to travel to faraway examination centres for no fault of theirs. The CBSE’s administration has touched a nadir of incompetency. I pray for good sense to dawn on the board’s administrators.
M. Vathapureeswaran,
Madurai
