NEET exam commences in 151 exam centres across Andhra Pradesh amid COVID limitations
VIJAYAWADA: The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), for admissions into medical colleges across the country, began in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday amid the pandemic. The candidates were allowed inside the centre from 11:45 and the exam will commence at 2 p.m.
While the National Testing Agency (NTA), which organises the exam, has taken several measures to ensure that all preventive measures for Covid19 are followed within the examination hall, the same guidelines went for a toss outside the test centres in Vijayawada.
Despite the students being asked to report at the centre as per the slots mentioned on their hall tickets to avoid crowding, students and parents were seen flouting the social distancing norms before the candidates were allowed to enter the exam centres.
However, the staff at each centre ensured that once the candidates entered the campus, they followed all the necessary rules. Each candidate was checked for his or her body temperature and was frisked using a metal detector instead of the regular manual body frisking to avoid physical contact.
Further, the lack of regular and good transportation facilities became a hurdle for a few to reach the centres. The aspirants were forced to make arrangements on their own, especially those who came from within the district as city buses have not been started yet. "Two of my friends who came from Ongole and Guntur could reach easily as interdistrict buses are available. But I had to take a cab as I came from Jaggaihpeta as city buses are not being operated," said M Satvika, one of the candidates.
Adding to her another aspirant Lavanya, who came to Vijayawada from Visakhapatnam opined, "The state government should have made some arrangements or should have allowed the centres to allocate a few classrooms for candidates like me who are coming from far away places. I reached Vijayawada at 3 am and the exam is at 2 pm. Where will the candidates wait for so long? Though majority of students have got centres in the city of first preference, there are few students like me who would have been in Vijayawada when they filled the application, but shifted to some other place due to some reasons. I have a backup of my friend's house so I can somehow manage. But my friend's place is also far away from my centre and again city buses are not available. We could have rested and revised well if some arrangements would have been made. However, the facility of special trains was good."
As many as 61,892 aspirants from the state have registered for the examination this year. The number of centres were increased this year as NTA had instructed to allow only 12 students in each classroom against the standard 24. Andhra Pradesh has a total of 151 exam centres.