2,164 students take NEET in Ludhiana

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, September 13

Today, 2,164 students appeared for National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) in the district. The test was conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA). As many as 402 students didn’t turn up for the test.

Three centres in the district were Guru Nanak Model Senior Secondary School, Doraha; Sri Guru Nanak Dev Convent School, Andlu; and Indo Canadian Academy, Ladian Kalan. The centres are located in the far-flung areas in the district

Huge rush of parents

Huge rush of parents was seen outside the centres. Many were seen standing in the sun while the others were sitting in their cars. “A tent could have been put up so that parents could rest there for some time. Amid huge rush, it was difficult to maintain social distancing,” said a parent.

Amid the Covid pandemic, elaborate arrangements were made to ensure social distancing and safety of the students. However, there was no arrangement for the parents who accompanied the students. Some were seen waiting outside the centres in the scorching heat while the others were seen sitting in their cars. There was a huge crowd of parents and it was difficult to maintain social distancing.

The exam was conducted from 2 pm to 5 pm. To maintain social distancing, only 12 students were seated in one room. Students were allowed entry at 1:30 pm and every 40 minutes, 150 students were allowed to enter the gates of the examination centres.

The body temperature of all candidates and staff members was checked. Hand sanitisers, masks and gloves, apart from the admit card and ID card, were required to gain entry into the centre.

The exam is held for admissions to MBBS/BDS courses and other undergraduate medical courses.

Principal of BCM Arya Model Senior Secondary School Paramjeet Kaur, who was NTA coordinator for Ludhiana, said a total of 2,164 candidates appeared for the test today against the registered 2,566 students.

“The centres were located in far-flung areas where there was enough open space so that norm of social distancing can be adhered to, as parents also accompanied the candidates,” she said.

Students had tough time locating centres

• All three centres were located in far-flung areas of the district and many candidates found it difficult to locate them. A candidate said he failed to appear for the exam as he was not able to reach the centre on time. “It took me an hour to reach the centre from the main city but I was unable to locate it,” he said.
• A few girls had a real tough time at Ludhiana railway station. Their centre was at Andlu which is almost 35 km from the station. They hired an auto-rickshaw and were charged a hefty amount by the auto-rickshaw driver.
• A parent said it took them more than half an hour to locate the centre. “The centre was at Laddian Kalan and it took them more than 30 minutes to locate it,” he said.