KCET Exams postponed
The Karnataka Common Entrance Test or KCET will be held as per schedule on July 30 and July 31, the high court directed today as it rejected a plea challenging holding of the examinations. For long, students had been demanding postponement of the KCET examinations, citing COVID-19 concerns.
The high court clarified that on no grounds, should a student be denied the opportunity to write the exam. Authorities should provide transport to students on a case-to-case basis and not just to COVID-19 positive students, it said.
The high court also directed that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) should be uploaded in the Karnataka Examination Authority's web portal before 8 pm, today. The state government hall tickets will serve as passes to move out of containment zones.
The arguments in the Karnataka High Court went on for over four hours. Students were waiting with bated breath, hoping for a decision in their favor.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Karnataka High Court had directed the state government to reconsider its decision on holding exams. Deputy Chief Minister and Higher Education Minister Dr. CN Ashwathnarayan called an emergency meeting via video conference with all the senior officials concerned and district DCs late Tuesday. The minister had said he was confident of conducting the Karnataka KCET exams as scheduled.
Karnataka recorded 5,503 COVID-19 cases and 92 deaths in the last 24 hours. The total number of active cases in the state are now at 1,12,504, including 42,901 discharged, 67,448 active cases, and 2,155 deaths.
