As JEE (Mains) set to start, CR & WR allow students to use suburban trains on exam dates

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Mumbai: All the students and their parents/guardians can now heave a sigh of relief as both the Central Railway and the Western Railway have in a joint statement issued here late on Monday announced that all the students appearing for the JEE and NEET exams will be allowed to travel using their suburban rail network on the exam dates.

The students accompanied by their parents/guardians will be allowed entry into station premises upon showing their exam admit card. In order to facilitate speedy travel, extra ticket booking counters will be opened at the suburban railway stations. See detailed joint press statement below in Bold.

A day before the JEE (Mains) exam begins on September 1, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made frantic efforts to allow the students to use the local rails to go for their exams.

While former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis wrote to home minister Amit Shah, legislator Ashish Shelar sought intervention of the railway minister Piyush Goyal. Shelar stated that he had spoken to Goyal, who agreed to let students travel on Mumbai’s local trains provided he received a proposal from the Maharashtra government. He suggested that the state could allow students to travel using their exam admit cards as their e-passes for travel. The union home secretary Ajit Bhalla also demanded the same in a letter to the chairman of the railway board, Vinod Kumar Yadav. 

Also Read: State prefers non-physical examination mode for final year exams to be held in October

About 11, 0313 students are appearing for the JEE (Mains) exams across 74 exam centers in the state.  This computer based test will be held between September 1-6 across the country. Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank in a series of tweets urged support from chief ministers to facilitate travel and other facilities for students of these exams. Pokhriyal stated that the government had gone ahead with these exams despite opposition from students to save their academic year. 

Nishank also urged students to trust the exam conducting agencies who are putting in their best efforts to ensure safety of students. The exams will be conducted with social distancing measures with sanitisers being provided at the exam centers.  The other major exam, the NEET, is scheduled later on September 13. 

Though there was no word from the state on this, fortunately the exams came at a time when the state had lifted travel restrictions on road travel from September 1. The e-passes would no longer be mandatory to travel by road, though the Metro services would stay closed till the end of September.

JOINT MEDIA UPDATE BY CR & WR

With reference to the permission received from Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, on date 31/08/2020 candidates who are appearing for Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) and National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), being conducted in September 2020, are permitted to travel by special suburban services over Mumbai Suburban network of Central and Western Railways.

The Admit Card of candidates appearing for JEE and NEET will be considered as authority to enter suburban stations with companions (parents/guardians) on exam days.  Station and Security officials at stations have been instructed suitably to allow the students on the exam days. Additional booking counters will be opened at important railway stations and frequency of suburban services will be increased accordingly for their convenience.

APPEAL

Except for essential category staff as per directives of state govt and students with companions appearing in JEE and NEET exam, others are requested not to rush to the stations.

It is also requested that travellers follow medical and social protocols as mandated for COVID19.

The public is requested not to believe on any rumour and updates as and when required, will be posted by the undersigned.

Issued jointly by – Shivaji Sutar, CPRO/CR & – Sumit Thakur, CPRO/WR