Although NTA has made elaborate arrangements to conduct the exams with safety, students are still urging for postponement of the JEE, NEET 2020 entrances. The chorus to defer JEE Main 2020 and NEET 2020 grew even louder on Sunday. 4,000 students observed a day-long hunger strike demanding postponement of exams due to rising cases of COVID-19.

JEE Main 2020 is scheduled to be conducted from September 01 to September 06, 2020, while NEET 2020 will be conducted on September 13, 2020.

According to AISA, 4,200 students observed a day-long hunger strike at their respective home demanding the cancellation of CBSE 10 and 12 Compartment Exams and postponement of entrances such as UGC-NET, CLAT, NEET and JEE 2020.

Hashtags such as #SATYAGRAHagainstExamInCovid, #PostponeNEET_JEE, etc. have been trending on twitter for days now. Several aspirants shared their part of the story and the inconvenience they would face amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the floods. 

Manoj S, a JEE aspirant from Karnataka, said, "We have to report to the JEE Main Exam center at 7 am. My center is almost 150 kilometers away and there are no train or bus services available currently.”

A NEET 2020 aspirant Anisha, hailing from Odisha, said "I am from Balasore and my NEET 2020 Exam center is in Bhubaneswar. I will have to travel for five hours to take my exam. There are no hotels or guesthouses that are open. Where will we stay?"

On Friday, the Education Ministry and NTA had confirmed that the two entrances would be conducted as scheduled in September and there would be no further delay. Read Details Here. 

Adding to their stand to hold NEET 2020 in September, MCI filed an affidavit in court stating that further delay in the exam will change the academic calendar of medical courses not only for this year but forthcoming years as well. Read Details Here. 

The campaign seeking postponement of JEE/NEET has evoked contrasting views among party leaders and ministers many backing the holding the tests as scheduled while others demanding postponement. 

JEE Aspirant writes to CJI Bobde seeking postponement of exam

A 17-year-old JEE aspirant has written to Chief Justice of India, Sharad Arvind Bobde praying to postpone JEE Main and NEET in view of COVID-19 and floods in parts of the country. 

As he is a minor, Supreme Court lawyer Alakh Alok Srivastava provided him assistance with the letter to CJI.

Rajasthan ready for other exams but not JEE, NEET; CM appeals Center to postpone the exams

In the next 3 months, Rajasthan is ready to hold exams such as D.El.Ed, board supplementary, constable recruitment, etc. for 10 lakh students. However, the state government wants JEE and NEET to be postponed. 

Although the conducting bodies of the following exams have assured that all precautions would be followed and that the number of exam centers has also been increased considerably, some people are considering it to be a mere political agenda.

Meanwhile, CM Ashok Gehlot demanded the Center to postpone JEE, NEET 2020 amid COVID-19. Joining him, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh also urged the Center and the SC to reconsider their decision. He suggested that the exams must be held about three to six months later.

Protest outside UN Headquarters for postponement of JEE/NEET 2020

Licypriya Kangujam, an eight-year-old Climate and Environmental activist posted on her twitter account that some of her friends are planning to protest outside the UN headquarters for JEE, NEET 2020.

Earlier she had also tweeted asking UN Secretary-General to write to the Government of India and PM Modi to postpone JEE and NEET 2020.

Telangana NSUI Chief on indefinite hunger strike

Adding more fuel to fire, Telangana NSUI Chief, Venkat Balmoor has gone on an indefinite hunger strike at Gandhi Bhawan in Hyderabad demanding postponement of JEE and NEET. Speaking to the media he said that the state government is acting like anti-student. Because of the state government’s attitude students are losing hope and committing suicides. 

Six states have filed a review petition seeking postponement of JEE/NEET

Six states have filed a review petition against Supreme Court’s dismissing plea demanding postponement of JEE, NEET 2020 on August 17, 2020. The six petitioners include WB law minister Maloy Ghatak, Rajasthan health minister Dr. Raghu Sharma, Chattisgarh food minister Amarjeet Bhagat, Jharkhand finance minister Rameshwar Oraon, Maharashtra education minister Uday K Samant and Punjab health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu.

However, Maharashtra Minister for Higher and Technical Education Uday R. Samant later said that the state never asked for cancellation of JEE and NEET but only sought to defer the entrances till a more opportunate time.

Earlier in a meeting convened by Sonia Gandhi, seven CMs had agreed to file a review petition urging SC to reconsider its recent decision dismissing plea to postpone JEE, NEET 2020. These seven CMs included WB CM Mamta Banerjee, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackery, Punjab CM Amrinder Gill, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot, Chattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, and Puducherry's V Narayanasamy.

Maharashtra is the only state among the petitioners that has the highest number of JEE Main and NEET aspirants among the six non-BJP states seeking a postponement. Maharastra alone has 1.1 lakh JEE aspirants and 2.3 lakh NEET aspirants. Rajasthan and West Bengal have less than half the number of candidates in Maharashtra while Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Punjab have one-fourth of the number. 

Though COVID remains the main cause of concern in these states, a section of parents say that postponing these exams would make it harder for the students working hard for the last two years.  

Jharkhand CM urges Union Education Minister to consider postponing JEE/NEET

On Thursday, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren urged the Union Education Minister to consider postponing JEE, NEET 2020. In a letter sent by him, he stated that the risk involved and lack of transport facility are the two major reasons for his objection.

He said that since there is no way to detect and prevent an infected examinee from appearing in the examination, it would put the rest of the examiners and invigilators in the exam hall at risk of being infected.

Protest held on Twitter demanding postponement of NEE, JEE 

As a massive nationwide online campaign by Congress, #SpeakUpForStudentSafety hashtag trended on Twitter on Friday. Students asked the government to listen to their problems and concerns. 

Even on Thursday, Hashtags such as #Rise_AgainstExamsInCovid, #JEENEET, #neetjeepostpone, #PostponeJEE_NEETinCOVID and #NEETJEEpostponekaro trended on twitter as a protest demanding postponement of JEE and NEET 2020. Students wore black bands and masks posting pictures demanding the exams be postponed amid COVID-19 pandemic.

An online petition also started on Wednesday wherein 1.20 lakh people signed to postpone JEE, NEET 2020.

Subramanian Swamy demands Postponement of JEE/NEET

In a tweet on Thursday, Subramanian Swamy said that “With 11 CMs opposing NEET and JEE exams what is the need to go to court? Do CMs have no power?”  The tweet came as a response to the campaign seeking deferring of JEE/NEET 2020.  

In a tweet posted on August 21, 2020, Subramanian Swamy said that he had sent a letter to PMO to hold JEE/ NEET after Diwali. He also spoke to the Union Education Minister supporting students to postpone the entrances. 

He later added to his stance that if the Modi government went ahead with JEE, NEET 2020 now, it would be a mistake similar to “1976 Nasbandi” that happened when Indira Gandhi was the Indian Prime Minister. He said, “ Indian voters may suffer silently but have long memories.” The comparison made by Swamy reminded how much attention the postponement of JEE, NEET 2020  campaign has gained among the media and political leaders. 

Soon after Swamy’s support, several other leaders also come up in support of the students demanding deferring the entrances. 

TN Government against NEET 2020

Tamil Nadu government urged Centre to dispense NEET and allow admissions on the basis of class 12th marks. State Health Minister C Vijayabaskar wrote a letter to Union Health Harsh Vardhan for the same.

Earlier, Tamil Nadu State Education Minister KA Sengottaiyan had written to Centre requesting either the cancellation of the exam or exempting students from Tamil Nadu for the same. Read More

Tamil Nadu State Education Minister K A Sengottaiyan has written to the Center requesting either the cancellation of the exam or exempting students from Tamil Nadu.

Congress to hold a nationwide protest on Friday

AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal announced on Thursday that Congress would be holding a nationwide protest on August 28, 2020 (Friday) at 11 AM demanding postponement of JEE/NEET 2020. Congress plans to have a protest following all the social distancing guidelines in front of the central government offices at state and district headquarters. 

Referring to practical problems such as limited transportation and lodging during pandemic and flood situations in states, Congress also plans to organize a massive nationwide online campaign #SpeakUpForStudentSafety on Friday from 10 AM. The online protest would be a number of series of videos, social media posts on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

Akhilesh Yadav wrote an Open Letter

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday spoke out against conducting JEE/NEET in September. He tweeted in Hindi, “Exams for life. This will not work, this will not work.”. He also wrote a one-page open letter citing all reasons for his objection major being rising COVID-19 cases and limited transport.

DMK Chief wrote to CM of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana and Kerala

President of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and education minister of Tamil Nadu, MK Stalin wrote letters to Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana and Kerala asking them to join non-NDA chief ministers in support with students and approach the apex court seeking postponement of NEET and JEE. 

Previously he had also urged the Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ to urgently postpone JEE Main, NEET 2020. He said that the safety of the students is the only priority of their government. 

Odisha Chief Minister Spoke to PM Modi

Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik also joined West Bengal CM and Tamil Nadu education minister demanding postponement over COVID-19 fears saying that it would be unsafe for students to visit the test centers. Post writing a formal letter to Union Education Minsiter, he also spoke to PM Modi requesting postponing JEE/NEET because of COVID-19 and floods in the state. 

Manish Sisodia Demanded postponement of JEE/NEET

On Wednesday, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia reiterated his demand to postpone JEE, NEET 2020. He told reporters, “They (Centre) are saying protocols will be followed. Following the same protocols that the Centre wants 28 lakh students to follow, lakhs of Indians have tested positive,”

Citing examples of the Union Home Minister and the Delhi Health Minister, Sisodia said that these leaders had taken all the necessary precautions and still got infected with the contagious disease so how can the Center still allow putting lives of 28 lakh students to risk. 

On Saturday, he had previously urged the central government to cancel JEE Main 2020 and NEET 2020 asking them to adopt another possible admission methodology.

Taking on to twitter, Delhi’s Education Minister Manish Sisodia had tweeted, “The central government is playing with the lives of millions of students in the name of JEE-NEET exam. My request to the Center is to cancel both these exams immediately and make an alternative arrangement for admission this year. In this time of unprecedented crisis, an unprecedented step will lead to a solution.”

Sisodia added, "To think that just NEET-JEE exam is the only option for admission is very conservative and impractical thinking. Educational institutions around the world are adopting new methods of admission. Why can't we do it in India? Where is it sensible to stake children's lives in the name of entrance examination?"

Child Climate Activist, Greta Thunberg supported Indian students through a Tweet

The uproar to postpone JEE. NEET 2020 grew more as even the child climate activist Greta Thunberg took on to Twitter on Tuesday and said that it is “deeply unfair” for Indian students to appear for NEET or JEE entrances amid COVID-19 pandemic. 

Rahul Gandhi asked for “an acceptable solution” demanding Postponing JEE/NEET

Previously several other opposition leaders had demanded postponing the two entrances. On Sunday during the news around students going on a hunger strike, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also demanded JEE and NEET 2020 to be deferred saying the government must listen to the 'Mann ki Baat' of students and arrive at "an acceptable solution".

Mamta Banerjee appealed Central Government to Postpone JEE/NEET

Adding to the list of supporters to defer JEE Main and NEET 2020, Mamta Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal also appealed to the central government to postpone NEET, JEE 2020. In a series of tweets made by Banerjee on August 24, 2020, she stated that in the last video conferencing of Chief Ministers with PM Narendra Modi, she was vocal about the issue.

With India’s COVID-19 tally racing past 31 lakhs students are concerned about the risks involved in appearing for the exams with such a rise in the COVID cases. Also, a number of students are facing issues with floods in their states making it yet another problem they will have to cater to in order to be able to appear for the entrances. 

As of August 26, Four state governments had sought postponement of JEE, NEET 2020.

Odisha Government to facilitate transport for JEE, NEET Candidates

On Friday, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy of Odisha said that state government would facilitate transportation for students appearing for JEE/NEET 2020. The government would provide free transport to students who have not been able to make any arrangements for themselves. 

No point in delaying JEE/NEET: Students and Parents from Nagpur

Many parents and students in Nagpur feel that there is no point in delaying JEE/NEET. A JEE aspirant Malha Limaye said that already a lot of time has been lost.

A NEET candidate Gazhal Hemne said that if students follow basic precautions there is no need to be worried about it.

Several other students said with all the chaos and shuffling of dates, there is a lot of distractions caused. A parent of a NEET candidate said that when banks, shops, autos are operating then it would be illogical to say that coronavirus would only enter exam halls.

A senior government official whose daughter is supposed to appear for the exam said that she is worried about the uncertainty of the exam dates and looks at the newspaper more than books just to stay updated with what is happening around JEE/NEET 2020.

IIT Directors support conducting JEE/NEET 2020 in September

Directors from IIT Delhi, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Ropar, IIT Roorkee have come up in support of JEE/NEET to be conducted as scheduled. The Directors said that postponing JEE/NEET 2020 would have serious repercussions on the careers of students.

IIT Kharagpur Director, Virendra K Tewari has said that conducting these exams is crucial for students seeking admissions in IITs and other top medical colleges. The Director has requested students to have faith in the organizing bodies who have been tirelessly working to provide a safe environment to conduct these exams. Read More.

Prof. Ajit K Chaturvedi Director of IIT Roorkee said that this year must not be made into a zero academic year as it might have consequences on the bright future of several students.

Two days ago, IIT Delhi Director V Ramgopal Rao had said that delaying JEET/NEET will have an adverse effect on the career of many bright minds. Read More.

Few States also supporting conducting JEE, NEET 2020 as scheduled 

Contrary to states demanding postponement there are other states and people who want JEE/NEET to be conducted as scheduled. States such as Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, etc. have said that they are ready to hold the exams. They said they would hold all the necessary precautions and safety procedures as directed by the Government of India and NTA.

Uttarakhand government says it is ready to conduct the exams as it has also been able to hold the board exams which had more candidates as compared to the entrance exams. 

Madhya Pradesh government is also ready to hold JEE/NEET 2020 as scheduled. The state has come up with a plan to conduct the exams taking all the necessary precautions. As of now, the MP government has made the foremost decision to double centers, ban frisking, made masks necessary, sanitization of exam centers, etc. Read More  

MP Home Minister Narottam Mishra also said that these entrances are important and therefore should not be made an issue. 

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minsiter, CN Ashwath Narayan said that there is no reason to put off JEE/NEET. Karnataka government has been able to hold to the CETs with over 1.96 lakh students wit 63 COVID positive students. 

Bihar minister Jai Kumar Singh asked students not to fear appearing for JEE/NEET as all necessary safety procedures are being taken. 

Goa CM Pramod Sawant also stood in favor of having the entrances as scheduled. He said that over 19,000 students took the board exams and none tested positive for COVID, the entrances can, therefore, be conducted in a similar manner.  

According to NTA, 99.07% of candidates have been provided with the first choice of preference for center cities. Furthermore, for candidates who have subsequently requested a change and NTA is considering the requests positively. 

According to the NTA elaborate arrangements have been made to sanitize the centers before and after the exams. Detailed COVID-19 Advisory has been published for both the exams by NTA. 

Read: COVID-19 Advisory for JEE 2020
Also Read: COVID-19 Advisory for NEET 2020

As per the latest records according to NTA, 11.49 lakh out of 15.97 lakh NEET 2020 Admit Cards have been downloaded while 7.6 lakh out of 9.53 lakh JEE 2020 Admit Cards have been downloaded.