Is JEE Main 2023 Session 1 Postponed?
There have been various reasons for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main to remain in news these days. From students' complaints apropos January intake to reintroduction of the eligibility criterion, here is everything that a JEE Main Aspirant should be aware of.
The registration process for JEE Main 2023 January is scheduled to be concluded on January 12, 2023. Candidates willing to take the exam must register themselves by filling the application form available online on the official website of JEE Main – jeemain.nta.nic.in.
Reason of JEE Main Postponement
The National Testing Agency has announced JEE Main 2023 Exam Date on the official website of JEE Main and the exam is scheduled to be conducted in two sessions i.e. January and April. The NTA will conduct JEE Main 2023 January Session on January 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31, 2023 while the second session will be held in April 2023.
However, the students preparing for JEE Main 2023 were not happy with the announcement as they thought they should have been given more time to prepare for the examination. The aspirants also claimed that some of the dates of JEE Main 2023 are clashing with their pre board exams, practical exams, viva, etc. Several students even took it to Twitter in order to raise their voices about this concern and even urged the Ministry of Education to intervene.
Besides, activist Anubhav Srivastava Sahai also filed a petition against the National Testing Agency (NTA).
Bombay High Court Refuses to Postpone JEE Main 2023 January Session
The Bombay High Court heard and considered the plea filed by Anubhav Srivastava Sahai and decided to not postpone the January Session of JEE Main 2023. A bench which was led by acting Chief Justice SV Gangpurwala and Justice Sandeep V Marne ruled on the petition.
“If any orders are passed today directing postponement of January exams, the same may have a cascading effect on future exams also. The extraordinary circumstances do not appear to exist for restraining respondents from holding January examination. Lakhs of students must have been preparing for exam,” the bench ordered, according to Bar and Bench.
Eligibility Criterion Issue
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the criterion of at least 75% marks in class 12 board exams for admission to NITs, IIITs, and CFTIs. As per the JEE Advanced Brochure released by IIT Guwahati, candidates must secure at least 75% marks class 12board exams. The minimum aggregate marks for SC, ST, and PwD category students must be at least 65% in class 12 board exams. Or candidates must fall within the category wise top 20 percentiles of successful candidates of their respective boards.
However, the top 20 percentile criterion was not released for the JEE Main Exam earlier. Students also raised their concern that this would cause problems for those who fail to obtain 75% marks in class 12 board exams. This creates a huge problem for those for whom this is the last chance to appear in the entrance exams.
The Bombay High Court decides to consider this issue on February 21, 2023.
Revised Eligibility Criteria
To express his concern, Member of Parliament (MP) Karti P Chidambaram wrote to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, requesting that the JEE 2023 eligibility criterion of 75% be removed for one year. “I would like to bring to your attention concerns raised by students who appeared for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Mains and Advanced in 2022. These aspirants studied hard to secure admission into India's leading engineering institutes, however, several hurdles which were completely outside their control, denied them a fair opportunity at the exam,” he said in his letter to Pradhan.
In response to this letter, the Education Minister replied that “the matter has been sent to the concerned department for necessary action”. The Education Ministry decided to revise the JEE Main 2023 eligibility criteria a few days after receiving the response. Aside from the All India Rank (AIR) of the candidate JEE Main, a student must have either scored 75% or higher in the class 12 board exam, or be in the top 20% of the respective board exam result.
Fake Notice on Social Media
A fake notice was also circulated on social media, claiming that the JEE Main 2023 January session had been postponed. However, candidates should be aware that the NTA has made no such decision, and the January exam will be held as scheduled on January 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31, 2023.