The NEET medical entrance exam and the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) will be held as per schedule, the Supreme Court said on Monday, dismissing pleas for postponement of the exams. The plea was heard by Justice Arun Mishra, who headed a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court.
The two exams are scheduled to be conducted in September.
“The careers of students cannot be put under jeopardy,” the court said as it dismissed a petition by 11 students to defer the exams due to the pandemic.
“Life cannot be stopped. We have to move ahead with all safeguards and all… Are students ready to waste one whole year? Education should be opened up. Covid may continue for a year more. Are you going to wait another year?,” said Justice Mishra.
The 11 students from 11 states, who filed the petition, had wanted the exam to be conducted only after normalcy is restored. The students also sought to increase the number of examination centres for NEET and JEE across the country.
The petition filed through advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava had alleged that the respondents have arbitrarily overlooked that parents of the affected students are facing financial distress amid the Covid-19 crisis. In such a situation, further burdening them with transportation and accommodation cost of their wards for appearing in the examination, is unjust, unfair and unwarranted.
