Latest news with #CommonEntranceTests
News18
2 days ago
- Politics
- News18
4 Toppers, 1 Centre: Patna CET Row Prompts Maharashtra To Ban Out-Of-State Exam Centres
Last Updated: The Maharashtra government will restrict all Common Entrance Tests (CET) for professional courses to within the state from next academic year due to irregularities at Patna centre In a significant policy shift, the Maharashtra government has decided to restrict all Common Entrance Tests (CET) for professional courses to examination centres within the state, starting next academic year. With this, students from outside Maharashtra taking the CET for a course offered by an institution will have to travel to an examination centre in the state. 'To maintain transparency and prevent malpractices in the CET, the state government has decided to restrict examination centres within Maharashtra from next year," the Maharashtra Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said on Thursday. This move comes amid rising concerns over alleged irregularities at certain centres outside Maharashtra, particularly one in Patna, Bihar, which produced an unusual cluster of top scorers in the CET for the five-year LLB course. The controversy erupted after four students – Vishesh Kumar Pathak, Himanshu Jaiswal, Prakhar Jyoti, and Sanskriti Saundarya – emerged as toppers with a perfect 100 percentile in the Maharashtra LLB CET. All four had appeared from the same test centre, Maha Infotech, located in Patna. The exam was conducted on April 28 in two shifts, and although the four candidates took the test in different sessions, they shared the same location, raising immediate suspicions about the integrity of the process. Officials confirmed that only one examination centre had been set up in Bihar this year, due to around 25 students applying from the state. In total, 18 exam centres were established outside Maharashtra, but the state government has now decided to eliminate all such centres following the Patna incident. The suspicious activity of the Patna centre will be investigated, Patil told the media, adding that strict action will be taken to prevent such incidents in the future. 'Such incidents raise serious doubts and undermine the credibility of the examination process. But by conducting the CET only in Maharashtra, we can ensure better monitoring and reduce the risk of organised malpractices," PTI quoted Patil as saying. The decision aims to bolster credibility and monitoring of the CET, which is a gateway for admissions to various undergraduate and postgraduate professional courses including law, engineering, management, and more. The issue gained further gravity as it unfolds alongside an ongoing investigation into a broader CET-related scam. Earlier in March, the Mumbai Crime Branch arrested three brokers from Delhi in connection with an MBA-CET admission racket. The accused reportedly collected between Rs 11 to Rs 20 lakh from aspirants in exchange for artificially inflated scores and advised them to choose remote centres in Maharashtra districts like Bhandara, Gondia, Yavatmal, and Jalna – areas allegedly under lower scrutiny. The case involving the four Patna students is now under investigation by the Maharashtra CID. While no direct evidence of malpractice has been made public, officials say the clustering of perfect scores at a single out-of-state centre cannot be overlooked. Each year, over 10 lakh students appear for various CETs across Maharashtra, with more than 25,000 candidates previously opting for centres outside the state. However, this option will no longer be available, even to out-of-state applicants. 'The new move would not only help maintain fairness but also enhance the integrity of the admission process," Patil told PTI. He also addressed concerns over low participation in CETs for professional undergraduate courses like BBA, BCA, BMS, and BBM. Of more than 2,00,000 available seats, only 61,666 students appeared for the exam this year. 'Since many seats are likely to remain vacant, students will be given another opportunity to take the CET," he said.
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Indian Express
No more MH-CET exams outside Maharashtra: Chandrakant Patil
Maharashtra will no longer conduct Common Entrance Tests (CETs) outside the state, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil announced on Thursday. The decision follows recent incidents raising concerns about the exam's integrity. On Wednesday, the five-year LLB CET results showed that all four top scorers were from a single exam centre in Patna, Bihar, sparking suspicion. Earlier, in March 2025, the MBA CET was marred by reports of students receiving unsolicited calls offering admission to top institutes for hefty sums of amount in range from Rs 11 to Rs 20 lakh. A complaint to Mumbai police had led to the arrest of three people in Delhi. Stating that the investigating team has been informed of the latest development from the LLB five-year CET's result which has sparked suspicion, Patil said, 'To ensure transparency, CETs will no longer be held outside of Maharashtra.' The Maharashtra CET Cell conducts over 18 entrance exams for admission to various professional courses in the state. Some of the CETs – such as MHT-CET, MBA and LLB CETs are extended to a few cities outside of Maharashtra like Patna, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, and Bengaluru to accommodate out-of-state aspirants. 'These are anyway very limited exam-centres. Further, this year, we had already reduced outside centres post the MBA-CET issue, but couldn't cancel previously announced exams. Now, we've decided to stop them entirely,' said an official from the CET Cell. The MBA-CET scam surfaced in March after students reported calls promising inflated marks to ensure admission to coveted colleges in the city in exchange for large sums. CET Cell had formed a confidential committee to probe the matter following which the matter was reported to the Mumbai Police.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Four students from same exam centre in Patna top law CET for Maharashtra
Four Patna students have secured a 100 percentile in MAH-LLB Common Entrance Test, whose results were declared on Wednesday. Not a single student from Maharashtra made it to the top five. The MAH-LLB (5-year) CET was held in two sessions on April 28. The exam was conducted online even in other states. A total of 35,074 candidates had registered for the exam, out of which 27,372 appeared. The 100 percentile achievers are Vishwesh Pathak, Himanshu Jaiswal, Prakhar Jyoti, and Sanskriti Saundarya, all of whom appeared from the same centre in Patna. While commenting on the law results, an official from the CET cell said that it is difficult to draw conclusions as the exam was conducted online. 'The four toppers are from two independent sessions. We had deputed venue officers from the higher education department from Maharashtra and they had travelled to those centres,' said the official. The CET cell has also announced the results for the Common Entrance Tests for undergraduate professional courses like Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA), Bachelor of Management Studies. The exam was held across four sessions on April 29-30. A total of 72,259 students registered, and 61,666 appeared for the exam. Five students secured 100 percentile in the CET UG exam. Two among them, Kiyan Chaitalia and Jasika Joseph, are from Mumbai. The others, Vedant Kalantri, Mohammad Yaqub and Divyanshi Rajput, hail from Latur, Parbhani and Wardha, respectively.
Time of India
16-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
PU students object to Rs 10K fee for entrance test answer sheet verification
1 2 Chandigarh: A Rs 10,000 fee for verifying entrance test answer sheets at Panjab University has drawn criticism from students and a formal appeal from a student organisation. The charge applies to the entrance exams for the University Institute of Legal Studies (UILS), the 3-year law course, and the Common Entrance Tests for both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Candidates can request verification within 10 days of result declaration by paying Rs 10,000. The university states that if a discrepancy is found during verification, the result will be revised and the fee refunded. However, students say the high charge discourages many from seeking verification. Some students say the cost has discouraged them from even attempting verification. "I attempted 55 questions out of 100 and was hopeful of scoring at least 30 marks, but my result said 'not qualified', which means less than 10 marks," said Priyanka Sharma, a resident of Amritsar who took the five-year law entrance test. "I wanted to file for verification, but the fee is Rs 10,000—that's too high." In a letter to the Vice-Chancellor, ABVP Panjab University described the fee as an "undue financial burden" and requested it be reduced to a more reasonable amount. The group argued that fair evaluation should not be restricted by cost, particularly for students from modest backgrounds. ABVP member Saksham Sharma said, "Transparency in evaluation is important, but making students pay Rs 10,000 just to view their own answer sheet puts a basic right out of reach for many." The university has not yet responded publicly to the appeal.
New Indian Express
03-05-2025
- General
- New Indian Express
APSCHE releases schedule for eight Common Entrance Tests
VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education (APSCHE) has released the schedule for eight Common Entrance Tests (CETs), which will be held across the State from May 6 to June 13, 2025. These computer-based examinations are conducted for admissions into various professional courses offered by universities in Andhra Pradesh. Designated universities will conduct the respective CETs. Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU), Anantapur, will conduct the AP ECET on May 6, while Andhra University (AU) will hold the AP ICET on May 7. JNTU Kakinada is tasked with administering the AP EAPCET for Agriculture and Pharmacy streams on May 19 and 20, and for Engineering on May 21, 24, 26, and 27. Sri Padmavati Mahila Visvavidyalayam (SPMVV) will conduct AP LAWCET and PGLCET in the morning shift of June 5, followed by Acharya Nagarjuna University (ANU) conducting the AP in the afternoon shift the same day. AU will also handle the AP PGECET from June 6 to 8, while Sri Venkateswara University (SVU) will conduct the AP PGCET from June 9 to 13 across three shifts daily. APSCHE has advised candidates to regularly check the official APSCHE portals for detailed guidelines, hall ticket downloads, and exam-related instructions.
