The decision of the Karnataka government to go ahead with the Common Entrance Test (CET) in August and not to give any weightage to marks or grades obtained in the second pre-university course (PUC) while drawing up the merit list for admissions to professional courses may be the only practical way forward in the interest of objectivity. The system of giving equal weightage to second PUC exam marks in core subjects like physics, chemistry, mathematics and biology, and the scores obtained in CET has had to be done away with since the PUC board exams were cancelled. There were earlier indications that the grading of students would involve internal assessments by their colleges. This had led to apprehension among students. Internal assessments have an element of subjectivity and partiality and therefore lack credibility. Such fears have now been allayed as there will be no minimum eligibility criteria to appear for CET. That CET ranking should be the lone parameter for admission to professional courses was suggested by Primary and Secondary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar and was accepted by Deputy Chief Minister Ashwath Narayan, who holds the higher education portfolio.
However, the move to conduct a common entrance test for admission to BSc courses has led to some consternation among students, who point out that this is an avoidable exercise as many seats in pure sciences anyway remain vacant. While the government concedes this is true, the question is, what will be the benchmark for admission to BSc course in certain reputed colleges that face a huge demand for admissions. Besides, admissions without any consideration for merit will mean injustice to hardworking students who have burned the midnight oil to stay ahead in the race. At a time when CETs are being held for agricultural sciences, pharmacy, yoga and naturopathy courses, why should pure sciences be an exception? The government would do well to consult teachers, colleges and students before taking a decision on the issue.
But the travails of the students may not entirely be over as they will have to also prepare for COMEDK, a separate entrance examination being conducted by private colleges for admission to seats under the management quota. Instead of subjecting students who are already stressed to additional trauma and risk, private colleges would do well to rely on the CET rankings for their admissions, too. Private college managements must realise that this is an exceptional year due to the pandemic and adopt a humane approach in the matter of admissions.