Timely or a waste of time?
CHITRA V. RAMANI
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Two-day CET will help us to be better prepared, say many students but some disagree
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Rural students will benefit, they will get more time to prepare
— Photo: K. Gopinathan
Better option: Students taking the CET now have more breathing space.
Finally, it has been decided. The Karnataka Examinations Authority will conduct the Common Entrance Test (CET) for admission to the various engineering, dental and medical colleges in the State over two days — April 29 and 30. The decision has come as a relief to many second Pre-University Course (PUC) students across the State, as rumours had it that CET would be scrapped. According to the grapevine, the Government had received a proposal regarding scrapping of CET
and admissions would be based on the second PUC marks.
For the past two years, CET was conducted on a single day. Several students and student organisations in the State had been urging the Government to revoke the practice and revert to the earlier system of conducting it over two days. They had claimed that attempting all the papers under CET on a single day was very stressful. After much debate, the State Government has decided to retain CET and spread it over two days.
The decision has, however, evoked a mixed response from the student community. While a few students feel that CET should be conducted on just one day, there are others who welcome the decision.
Another landmark decision that the Government has taken this year is with regard to conducting the counselling sessions in two places in the State, other than Bangalore. Hitherto, counselling was held only in Bangalore and students from all over the State were forced to travel to Bangalore. The change has been welcomed by all students. They are of the opinion that with this, the counselling session will be completed soon and chances of it being prolonged are less.
B.P. Rahul, second PUC student of Vidya Vikas College, Chitradurga, says since CET will be conducted over two days, students will now have the time to thoroughly prepare and gear themselves for the tough competition.
Saving time, money
He feels decentralisation of the counselling will benefit students, especially from rural areas. “Students and parents from other parts of the State were finding it difficult to travel to the capital. If the counselling is conducted in two other places, students, especially those from the economically weaker sections, will be able to save money on travel, food and accommodation,” he says.
Hailing the decentralisation of counselling, Kartik Shroff, second PUC student of Don Bosco College, says the Government has taken a good decision, which is in the interest of students from poor economic backgrounds.
About conducting the test over two days, Kartik says he is particularly happy because unlike every year when CET was conducted just 10 days after the second PUC examinations, this year the CET aspirants have nearly a month to prepare for the test.
Rooting for Davangere
Aditya Tatti from JMIT College, while rejoicing the move, hoped the Government would set up a counselling centre at Davangere. “Then, I may not have to go to Bangalore to choose a seat. CET over two days is also a very good decision,” he adds.
Vaishnavi A.K. from Vidya Mandir also welcomed both the decisions. “Holding the CET, which is a very crucial examination, over two days provides students some respite and prevents mental fatigue. As it is, students, these days, appear for more than one competitive examination. This way, students are provided with an opportunity to prepare better,” she says.
Namita C.S. from the same college shares Vaishnavi’s opinion. “After attempting two papers on the first day, a student will vaguely know where he/she stands. The student can then prepare and perform well in the test the next day,” she adds.
No need for it
Not all students share the same opinion. Arun D., second PUC student at KLE PU College, does not support the decision to conduct CET over two days. “I really do not see the need to hold it on two days. Personally, I would like to finish the test in one shot. That way, there is less tension,” he says.
He is, however, supportive of the decentralisation of CET counselling. “Many students from rural areas will benefit from this move.”
Shashank Kaira C. of the same college shares his opinion on both CET and decentralising the counselling. “I really do not see any reason for holding it on two days. The move may be welcomed by the students in rural areas, who may not be familiar with the pattern, and will give them time to prepare,” he says.
Chaitanya K. from National Public School, Rajajinagar, says that the Indian Institutes of Technology-Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE), which is a six-hour affair, is conducted on a single day. “Two days for CET is a waste of time. The system of holding it on a single day could have been retained. Spreading the CET over two days, however, may benefit the students from rural areas.”
He welcomes the decentralisation of CET counselling. “Students from across the State come to Bangalore to choose seats. If conducted in two other places, the counselling may be completed ahead of schedule while lessening the burden of travel on many students,” he adds.
Suhas G.P. from the National Academy of Learning and Rahul Krishna of KLE PU College want the Government to revoke its decision. “We would prefer to finish attempting all the papers on a single day. But considering that the Government has taken this decision in the interest of the larger student community, students like us have no choice,” they aver.
(With inputs from Firoz Rozindar in Chitradurga)
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