Technical glitches persist on day-2 of CUET-UG phase-2 exams

NEW DELHI: For the second consecutive day, harried students and parents had a tough time when many CUET-UG centres cancelled exams due to technical glitches.

Students in Noida, adjoining Delhi, were the worst affected, with the National Testing Agency (NTA) cancelling the exam in the Noida examination centre. Many took to social media to share the notice NTA put up in front of the centres. The notice said, “It is regretted that due to technical/logistics reasons, the CUET (UG) exam scheduled at the centre on August 5 is postponed to August 12.”

For students and parents, already stressed out due to the exam and travelling long distances to the centre, it was worse when they had to brave the rain for two hours before being turned away as the exam was cancelled at the last minute.

The testing agency said that the first shift of the Common University Entrance Test (CUET)-Undergraduate exam was carried out smoothly at 95 per cent of the centres across the country, despite students posting anxious messages for NTA on Twitter about the exam being cancelled at their centres.

In Noida, many students said their exam was cancelled in both the morning and afternoon slots. In Greater Noida, many students complained that their exam started late by half an hour due to technical glitches. In some other centres, students said during the exam also their system was not working properly and it was hanging, thus slowing the process.

One of the students at the Noida centre said he had come to the examination centre two hours before the exam. “But when it was time for us to take the exam, we were informed that it had been cancelled due to technical glitches. It was such a waste of time. They could have informed us on time. We are already under so much stress because of the exam,” the student said.

Another student said that they had to brave the rain and didn’t want to leave the centre till they got the NTA notification about the exam being cancelled.

A student, who had travelled a distance of 50 km, shared that they were not allowed to carry water bottles, and when they asked for water during the exam, they were told to fetch it from the water cooler. “I had to get up to get water as I was very thirsty."

Another student added that the exam was easy, and it was the only saving grace after the early morning anxious moment when they were told that their examination centre was changed. “I was on the verge of tears. My parents panicked too when we were told my centre was not in Paschim Vihar but in Jahangirpuri, which was 30 km away. Somehow, we managed to reach on time,” she added.

“Wasn’t the CUET supposed to make the UG admissions process simpler?," asked another student on Twitter.

NTA said they would release the admit cards soon for the remaining exams scheduled from August 7, as many students urged the testing agency to release the admit cards.

The second phase of CUET-UG had a rocky start on Thursday as technical and administrative issues forced the NTA to cancel the second shift exam across all 489 centres and postpone the first shift at 29 centres in 17 states. These exams will be conducted on August 12.

The NTA has also postponed the CUET-UG in Kerala, scheduled for August 4, 5 and 6, due to heavy rains and said fresh dates would be announced later.

Around 6.8 lakh candidates will appear for CUET phase 2 exams.

The phase I exams were conducted on July 15, 16, 19 and 20, and the second phase exams are slated for August 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 20. The first phase saw 76.48 per cent attendance, while as many as 58,909 candidates missed it.

According to the University Grants Commission (UGC), over 14 lakh registrations have been made for the entrance exam, a gateway to undergraduate courses in 90 universities across India.

(THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS)

623 Days ago