Karnataka: Staff turn saviours for KCET candidates reaching wrong centres

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Common Entrance Test (KCET) for admission to professional courses was held smoothly across the state on day one, on Thursday. 

According to a press statement by Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA) executive director H Prasanna, 96 per cent of the total registered candidates attended the physics and chemistry examinations held across 745 centres in the state.

The officer appreciated the staffers for successfully guiding the candidates who were struggling at the last minute without hall tickets and also those who had gone to the wrong examination centres, ensuring that they appeared for the exam. 

“A candidate named Anvi Sojan, who was supposed to write the exam at the BGS PU College in Mahalakshmi Layout in Bengaluru, had mistakenly gone to BGS Global College near Kengeri. Since returning to the Mahalakshmi Layout centre would have caused a delay, special arrangements were made for the candidate to write the exam at BGS Global College,” Prasanna said.

In another such instance, a candidate named Chinmayi, who was supposed to write the exam at a college in Sagar, had mistakenly gone to Science Field College in Shivamogga.

Once the matter was brought to his notice, the college principal made arrangements for the candidate to travel to Sagar in the invigilator’s vehicle, helping the candidate reach in time for the exam, the officer said.

At the district level, the exams were monitored through CCTV cameras under the leadership of the respective deputy commissioners and the zilla panchayat CEOs.

Command centre

At the command centre set up in the KEA office in Bengaluru, CCTV camera footage from examination centres in Bengaluru and Kalaburagi districts were reviewed and monitored. 

The Authority even allowed those who applied Wednesday to write the exam on Thursday.

Late applications 

“More than 100 candidates, who had not applied earlier due to various family reasons, such as illness, inability to pay the prescribed fees, had submitted their applications late and appeared for it on Thursday.”

Even on Wednesday, as many as 13 candidates applied and wrote the exam on Thursday.

Hall ticket issues

“Not only that, 15 candidates who called up KEA helpline at 9.30 am on Thursday, saying they were unable to download their hall tickets because they did not have their application numbers, were also assisted in downloading their hall tickets and allowed to write the exam,” the officer said.