NEW DELHI: The NEET UG retest got underway across the country on Sunday afternoon amid complaints from female candidates and parents over security checks that required students to remove hair bands, dupattas and scarves before entering examination centres.
The retest is being conducted after the NTA cancelled the original examination conducted on May 3, following allegations of question paper leak and other irregularities.
The examination commenced as scheduled at 2.30 pm, with 22,800 candidates registered to appear across India and abroad.
Scenes of anxiety and anticipation played out outside examination centres before the test began.
Children touched the feet of their parents to seek blessings, mothers kissed and reassured their daughters, students offered last minute prayers, while police personnel and invigilators urged candidates to enter the centres as time was running out.
This reporter visited the Government Girls Senior Secondary School at East of Kailash in New Delhi, where 480 candidates were scheduled to appear for the examination.
Women security personnel were asking most female students to remove rubber bands from their hair before entering, while those wearing dupattas or scarves were instructed to hand them over to accompanying family members. Several girls complied reluctantly.
Gunja Singh, whose daughter Sakshi was appearing for the examination, said, “For minor mistakes, they are pulling up my girl and other candidates. Those who commit bigger crimes like leaking and selling papers get away while our children are harassed for minor things.”
A parent, speaking on condition of anonymity, told this reporter, “Why are students frisked so much and treated as if they are terrorists? In this searing heat in Delhi, my daughter has been forced to remove her band and leave her long hair loose to appear for the exam. This will create much sweating and some physical distress for her and will impact her performance at some level. This is all so unnecessary.”
The entire Bhatnagar family, including their pet dog Gracey, stood outside the school to offer moral support to Diva. Her father, Abhishek Bhatnagar, told this reporter, “We did not want to take any chances. I did a recce earlier from my house in Vikaspuri to this spot and found there is a park nearby. We reached here by 11.30 am and spent an hour in the park before my daughter decided to go in. It will be nine hours when we return home and so we did not want to leave our doggie behind. She was also very keen to join us when she saw us getting ready to leave!”
A few students committed errors but received some leniency from the authorities.
The parent of a female candidate appealed to security personnel to allow her entry after they allegedly lost her Aadhaar card en route to the examination centre, although she had a digital copy on her mobile phone.
Another candidate, Yamin, had not brought his updated Aadhaar card carrying the correct date of birth and had mistakenly brought an older version.
“There is a mismatch in the date in the Admit Card and this Aadhaar card,” his friend explained.
Another student had brought the admit card issued for the cancelled May 3 examination instead of the retest admit card.
Three students made a dash to the centre shortly after 1.30 pm and were allowed inside.
The Cooling Zone set up by the Delhi government received appreciation from candidates and parents. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Kailash East, V K P S Yadav, said, “Everything has been smooth at this centre so far. We are all doing our best to help the students as well as maintain tight vigil.”