Common University Entrance Test: 14.99 lakh candidates to appear in Common University Entrance Test 2023 – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Over eight lakh candidates are going to sit for the first phase of the Common University Entrance Test (CUET-UG) 2023 to be conducted between May 21 and 24. Another 7.7 lakh aspirants have been allotted cities and centres for the second phase scheduled between May 25 and 28.
Meanwhile, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has been advised to keep all examinations in Manipur from May 29 onwards due to the law-and-order situation there. The NTA, on its part, contacted the 3,697 candidates, who had opted to appear in Manipur, asking their preferred city. The National Testing Agency on Friday also stated though due to high number of applicants in Jammu and Kashmir, some candidates may still have to take the exam outside the state, it is exploring the possibility of creating a temporary centre in Srinagar.
The second edition of the undergraduate entrance exam is set to begin across the country, barring Manipur, on May 21. While it was earlier scheduled to end on May 31, the NTA decided to extend the exam schedule by at least four days to accommodate the higher number of candidates in certain cities. There will be four exam days in June, apart from two reserve days.
Several students from Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand, however, have been caught off guard as they have been allotted examination centres away from their hometown irrespective of their preferences for ones closer home. The NTA stated that Jharkhand has witnessed a phenomenal increase in the number of candidates. There are 1.78 lakh candidates from Jharkhand and according to NTA, over 52,000 will take the exam in the first phase and over 77,000 will appear in the second phase.
“Though all measures have been taken for allotting the candidates their preferred cities, there are some candidates who have been allotted a city in a neighbouring state. However, we have announced the city information slip in advance to give them time for making travel arrangements,” stated the agency.
With each applicant eligible to appear for a maximum of 10 papers, the NTA would be conducting exams for 64.35 lakh test papers for the 14.99 lakh candidates. On an average each candidate will appear for around 4.3 papers. The number of applications this year saw an increase of 41 per cent from the debut edition last year.