Conducting the BEd entrance examination despite the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic shows the sensitivity and caution of the state government and sets the trend for upcoming competitive examinations during the COVID period, said Monika S Garg, Deputy Chief Secretary of the Higher Education Department.

GARG reacted to the debates on whether or not the Uttar Pradesh B.Ed Joint Entry Examination should have taken place at a time when coronavirus cases were on the rise in the state.

Admitting students on the basis of their final year marks and without an entrance test would have been an injustice to them, she said. The decision to conduct the test was taken in the interests of students so that everyone would have an equal opportunity, Garg added.

"There have been debates that the government should have done away with the safety examination or that the students should have been admitted on a merit basis. However, that would not have been fair to the student community," Garg said.

UP B.Ed JEE Result 2020 Releasing on September 05, 2020, read more

She added that admissions based on the final year marks were not a standardized process across universities, as the marking is often done on a bell curve based on the student pool of that university.

As a result, the top few students from each university are expected to score higher, regardless of how they compare with students across the state.

That's why the entrance examination was something in the students ' interest, she said.

"We had considered an online review, but the digital divide across the state and access issues were dissuasive. A zero academic session would also have been difficult as students were already struggling," she said.

The additional chief secretary shared how to increase the number of centres to social distance norms, to conduct a review only at government colleges to prevent unfair means, and to adopt innovative ways, such as digital face detection, helped to smoothly conduct the examination.

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"Last year, the exam was carried out in only 15 districts with between 60 and 130 centres in the district. This year, there were twin objectives of minimal movement and adequate social distance. It was decided to host the entrance exam in almost all districts for the convenience of candidates," Garg said.