JEE Main aspirants with dyslexia, upper limb disability can use scribes

CBSE had said earlier only visually impaired would get an assistant

An engineering aspirant who is visually impaired, dyslexic or has any disability in upper limbs will be entitled to use the services of an amanuensis (scribe) while taking the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE), Main to be held in April.

Candidates who have lost their fingers or hands can also use the services of a scribe in the test so that they do not face any difficulty in bubbling the optical response sheet (ORS), the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) said.

The CBSE clarification comes months after it announced the dates for JEE-Main Examination and released the information brochure.

The board is set to conduct JEE-Main in pen and paper mode across the country on April 8. It will hold the computer-based entrance test for JEE-Main aspirants, opting for it, on April 15 and April 16.

"The services of an amanuensis (scribe) are available to candidates who are visually impaired, dyslexic, have disability in the upper limbs or have lost fingers/hands, thereby preventing them from bubbling the optical response sheet," the CBSE said in a notification.

Class X1 students

The scribes will be the students of Class XI from science stream with mathematics as one of the subjects, it said.

The information brochure for JEE-Main 2018, issued by the CBSE with announcement of the date of the nationwide test in October last year, stipulated that "only" visually challenged candidates who have 40% or more disability will be provided with a scribe/reader upon request.

"This provision stands amended with the clarification issued by the board. Candidates with dyslexia and other disabilities as mentioned in the notification can also avail the services of a scribe," official sources said.

Such candidate will have to submit a request for scribe to their centre superintendent at least two days before the examination. The centre superintendent will identify the scribe/reader students.

"In no case will the candidates be allowed to bring their own scribe. However, in case a request is received from the candidate, he/she would be allowed to meet the scribe a day before the examination to verify the suitability of the scribe," the JEE-Main brochure stipulates.