An online survey conducted by the the Co-curricular and Academic Interaction Council and Student Affairs Council at Indian Institutes of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D) revealed that 93 per cent of the IIT-D students were opposed to the new Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) format.
As per the survey, only 5 per cent of the respondents felt that the new format will lead to a reduction in stress, thereby questioning the credibility of the claims made by the MHRD. Further, 87 per cent of the students believe that the way in which the decision has been made leaves much to be desired. Therefore, there should be more debates and discussions involving the stakeholders: faculty, students, alumni, and then a proper decision should be taken and implemented from 2014.
As many as 78 per cent students felt that the new test will lead to a reduction in quality of the students being admitted to the IITs.
It was further shown as per the survey that 88 per cent of the students want IIT-D to go ahead to support the IIT-Kanpur proposal to conduct the existing JEE, if the MHRD will not reconsider its decision. Regarding the pattern of the exam, several students (52 per cent) desired that the JEE be returned to its pre-2006 format with a subjective main exam after an objective screening exam, however an equally high 44 per cent were in support of the status quo.
The students commented that the hasty procedure followed by MHRD was the most shocking of all actions. They expressed their strong disapproval towards the attempts made to rob IITs of their autonomy which is much-needed if IITs are to remain world-class institutions.
The online referendum was responded to by 921 students at IIT-D. Students were asked to login using their unique entry number and academic system’s login password ensuring authenticity and one vote per person. Students were asked about their views on the proposed system especially with respect to the inclusion of Board marks, ‘one nation, one exam, one day’ policy and the quality of decision-making procedure.