New Delhi, (PTI): Scores of engineering aspirants are demanding that the first session of the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE)-Main scheduled in January be postponed as the crucial exam is slated to be held just a fortnight before board exams and may clash with practical exams.
The first session of the engineering entrance exam is scheduled from January 24 to 31, 2023 except Republic Day.
The class 12 CBSE board exams are slated to be held from February 15, 2023 while practical exams will be conducted in January.
Hashtag "postponeJEEMains" is trending on social media with aspirants tagging the education ministry and National Testing Agency (NTA) raising their demands.
"Pursuing engineering courses and becoming an engineer is a dream of lakhs of students and the emotions of their parents and teachers are connected with this exam. But due to the declaration of premature dates, they have started to give up on their dreams," said Ritu, a JEE-Main aspirant.
Sarfaraz, a social media user tweeted, "Not allowing us a fair chance in JEE Mains will be huge injustice. So please bring about fairness when it comes to exams as important as JEE".
Anubha Sahai, a lawyer and President of India Wide Parents Association, said, "Students are in stress and this is serious. Only a couple of days ago three students died by suicide in coaching hub Kota due to stress".
"The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) schedule was released recently and the exam will be held in May. Then why can't the same be done for JEE? There should be uniformity for all entrance exams," Sahai stated.
The second edition of JEE-Main is scheduled to be conducted on April 6, 8, 10-12, 2023.
"Assam Boards practicals fare beginning from 25 January, Bihar Board practicals from 10 January, Telangana Boards practical from 20 January and JEE Main from 24-31 January. Aren't all these dates clashing with each other? Why cannot the government see," said Aditya Jha, an engineering aspirant.
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Deir al-Balah (Gaza Strip) (AP): The Israeli military said Sunday it would pause fighting in three populated areas of Gaza for 10 hours a day and open secure routes for aid delivery to desperate Palestinians, launching a series of steps meant to address a surge in hunger in the territory as Israel faces a wave of international criticism over its conduct in the 21-month war.
The military said it would begin a “tactical pause” in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi, three areas of the territory with large populations, to “increase the scale of humanitarian aid” entering the territory.
The pause would begin every day at 10:00 am to 8:00 pm local time until further notice, beginning Sunday.
The military also said Sunday that it carried out aid airdrops into Gaza, which included packages of aid with flour, sugar and canned food.
Food experts have warned for months of the risk of famine in Gaza, where Israel has restricted aid because it says Hamas siphons off goods to help bolster its rule.
Images emerging from Gaza in recent days of emaciated children have fanned global criticism of Israel, including by close allies, who have called for an end to the war and the humanitarian catastrophe it has spawned.
Israel said the new measures were taking place while it continues its offensive against Hamas in other areas.
The local pause in fighting came days after ceasefire efforts between Israel and Hamas appeared to be in doubt. On Friday, Israel and the U.S. recalled their negotiating teams, blaming Hamas, and Israel said it was considering “alternative options” to ceasefire talks with the militant group.
After ending the latest ceasefire in March, Israel cut off the entry of food, medicine, fuel and other supplies completely to Gaza for 2 ½ months, saying it aimed to pressure Hamas to release hostages.
Under international pressure, Israel slightly eased the blockade in May. Since then, it has allowed in around 4,500 trucks for the UN and other aid groups to distribute. The average of 69 trucks a day, however, is far below the 500 to 600 trucks a day the UN says are needed for Gaza. The UN says it has been unable to distribute much of the aid because hungry crowds and gangs take most of it from its arriving trucks.
As a way to divert aid delivery away from the UN, Israel has backed the US-registered Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which in May opened four centers distributing boxes of food supplies. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since May while trying to get food, mostly near those new aid sites, the UN human rights office says.
Israel has railed against the UN throughout the war, saying that its system allowed Hamas to steal aid, without providing evidence. The UN denies that claim and says its delivery mechanism was the best way to bring aid to Palestinians.
The military said the new steps were made in coordination with the U.N. and other humanitarian groups.
Much of Gaza's population, squeezed by fighting into ever tinier patches of land, now relies on aid.
The war began with Hamas' Oct 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, when militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostages. Hamas still holds 50 hostages, more than half of them believed to be dead.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 59,700 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The ministry operates under the Hamas government. The U.N. and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.