Based on random sampling, the National Testing Agency said that the attendance for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) was more than 85 percent on September 13, 2020. Candidates who missed the exams after being tested positive for Covid-19 will get another opportunity to sit for the exams, the date for which will be announced later.
“Based on random sampling the attendance is found to be between 85% to 90%, which is marginally lower than that of last year. The tests have been completed successfully,” said a senior official at the NTA headquarters in Noida.
From this year, the admissions to MBBS course in the 13 All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry will also be made through NEET following the amendment in National Medical Commission Act, 2019 passed by the Parliament in 2019.
A total of 15.97 lakh candidates registered for the test this year as against 15.13 lakh in 2019. The attendance in 2019 was 92.9 percent.
The test was offered in 11 languages – English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Marathi, Odia, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu this year. Based on the initial report more than 77% aspirants took the test in English, around 12% in Hindi and 11% in other languages.
Vineet Joshi, director general, NTA said, “Candidates who missed the test or denied entry as they are positive (of COVID-19) will be allowed to take the test later. They need to follow the procedure like email to NTA attaching their medical test certificate, etc. NTA will take stock and announce the date later.”
The NEET-UG is conducted for admission to MBBS and BDS courses in the medical and dental colleges approved by the Medical Council of India and the Dental Council of India respectively.
The results are expected to be announced in the second week of October, 2020.
Source: Times of India
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