In the late hours of Tuesday night, when many youngsters were all set to appear for Common University Entrance Test (CUET), the ones who got their centre in Delhi were in for a unexpected turn of events. The CUET (UG), which was scheduled for May 15, across India, was postponed only in the Capital and rescheduled for May 29 due to “unavoidable reasons” as per a public notice issued by National Testing Agency (NTA). This reportedly impacted almost 1.46 lakh students, who were left huffing and puffing at the last minute.
“On Tuesday night, I tried to download my admit card and found that the NTA website for CUET had crashed and information of all the names and locations of exam centres had disappeared,” shares Shourya Nahar, 18, a resident of Kirti Nagar who had to appear for English and General Test on Wednesday. Nahar adds, “I was so taken aback because none of us expected this kind of lapse in the system. It felt worse because my friends who got their centres in Noida were able to sit for the exam. Now I’ll just have to wait until May 29. This is just unfair… What kind of a website has been made that hangs along with the future of so many students.”
Similarly, Simran, 19, a resident of Kailash Colony, whose exam centre was Evergreen School in Vasundhara Enclave, says, “NTA is actually posing to be National ‘Trauma’ Agency for me because I got to know that our exam has been postponed at 10pm on the eve of the paper! Worst, I had no way to verify whether this was fake news or real. It wasted my four hours of our prep and sleep time just to confirm if I have to appear for the exam the day after. To top it all, the official website crashed and my distant relatives and friends in other cities were calling me and my parents to check if this update was true.”
For those who were travelling from outside the city had to face a double whammy. Among these was Rahul Gandhi, 18, from Panipat (Haryana), whose exam centre was to be Govt Co-ed Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in Rohini sector 21. “I was on my way to Delhi on Tuesday night; my elder brother was driving me to the city in a car when I found out that the exam has been cancelled. We had to return midway and upon reaching home my parents started scolding me saying ‘Mazak bana rakha hai’. I had to convince them showing the notice that this is all true, and I didn’t miss my exam. But now I’m more worried to appear for the exam at the later date because I fear that the question paper might be a tougher than the one that others appeared for in the rest of the country on the original exam date,” says Gandhi.
Whereas Shubham Rawat, 17, from Faridabad (Haryana), adds, “I had to make special arrangements to come to Delhi since I was allotted an examination centre here despite opting for Faridabad and Ghaziabad as my first two preferences. Now I’m staying with my relatives (maternal uncle) at their residence, near Akshardham, and my exam centre is in Delhi Cantt… There was no official announcement and no message to confirm what exactly happened so I had almost reached the centre. Now I have to undertake this journey all over again.”
Among the many youngsters who feel disheartened about the “mismanagement” and “trauma”, some even heaved a sigh of relief thinking about the extra time they have got to prepare better. Take for instance, Avinav Bhatt, 17, who was set to appear for the exam at Deshbandhu College in Kalkaji. “When I learned about the news of cancellation of my exam, I felt partly frustrated but also felt happy as I now have more time to prepare.” Similarly, Sara Khan, 17, resident of Vasundhara Enclave, whose centre was Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in north-weat Delhi’s Pooth Kalan, says, “I honestly feel bad for my friends who chose Noida as their centre instead of Delhi because they had to take the exam whereas I’ve got more time to prepare. Honestly, I and can’t be happier! Thank God I had not planned any vacation this year and hence there’s no stress to reschedule everyone’s holiday plans at home due to the extended CUET calendar.”
Other like Bhavishya Goyal, 17, a resident of New Ashok Nagar, says, “I chose Delhi as my centre because I reside in Delhi and was allotted Mount Carmel School in Anand Niketan. A majority of my friends chose Noida for exam centre. And now that my exam has been postponed, I would have to endure the examination stress for a far longer time as compared to them because they will get to enjoy after exams while I will still be studying.”
Seeing the “uncertiantly of this all”, Neetu Rai, 17, a resident of Gurugram’s sector 87, shares that her exam centre was Holy World Public School in Najagfarh untill now. “But I have a sinking feeling ever since this delay has happened in exam since it has created so many new hurdles in an already complicated system,” shares Rai, adding, “Because of the website crash, I couldn’t check my centre for the exam that’s scheduled for May 16. Now I’m being told that it will reflect only in the evening. But what if the website crashes again? The reporting time for the exam is 8am in the morning. How can I manage all this stress and appear on time?”
(With input by Alina Azfar)
