Students who missed JEE Advanced will get a chance to reappear next year

Candidates who could not take JEE Advanced this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic will get a chance to reappear directly for the exam next year, the Joint Admission Board (JAB) said on Tuesday.

While Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main is conducted for admission to engineering colleges across the country, JEE Advanced is conducted for admission to 23 IITs in the country. To appear for JEE Advanced, it is mandatory to clear JEE Main.

Currently, a candidate is allowed only two attempts at IIT entrance exam, however, those in their final year or second attempt who could not take the exam this year will be given a relaxation. The demand for extending the number of attempts has been raised by students and academicians several times.

"It has been decided to allow all the candidates, who had successfully registered to appear for JEE Advanced 2020 but were absent in the exam, to appear for JEE-Advanced next year, as a one-time measure.

"To ensure equal opportunities to all, it has also been decided that these candidates will not have to qualify JEE Main again and will be allowed to directly appear on the basis of their successful registration to appear in JEE Advanced this year," said IIT Delhi Director V Ramgopal Rao.

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi was responsible for conducting JEE Advanced this year.

"This relaxation of the existing eligibility criteria will be in addition to proportionate relaxation of age bar. These candidates would be considered in addition to and not as part of the total number of candidates who would qualify from JEE Main in 2021 for appearing in JEE Advanced," Rao said.

Of the 2.5 lakh students who were eligible to appear for JEE Advanced, only 1.5 lakh had taken the exam. Over 43,000 candidates, including 6,707 girls, have cleared the exam.

JEE Main for admission to engineering colleges was conducted from September 1 to 6 and JEE Advanced on September 27 amid strict precautions in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Staggered entry and exit of candidates, use of sanitisers at gates, distribution of masks and social distancing as candidates queued up, were followed at examinations centres across the country.