KEA announces dress code for candidates appearing for CET; Students urged to arrive 90 minutes early
Bengaluru: The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) has announced a mandatory dress code and strict reporting guidelines for students appearing for the Common Entrance Test (CET), scheduled to be held from April 15 to 17.
According to a release, all candidates must adhere to a prescribed dress code: both male and female students are required to wear half-sleeve attire, preferably without collars. Male candidates must wear simple pants with minimal or no pockets, while items such as jeans, kurta-pyjamas, and shoes are prohibited. The use of electronic gadgets, including mobile phones, smartwatches, and earphones, will not be allowed inside examination halls.
To ensure smooth conduct of the exam, KEA has directed candidates to report to their respective centres at least 90 minutes prior to the commencement of the examination.
KEA Executive Director H. Prasanna emphasised the importance of early arrival. “Candidates must reach the centre one-and-a-half hours in advance to undergo security screening. Police personnel and home guards will be deployed to conduct thorough checks before entry,” he said. Prasanna also noted that facial recognition technology and QR code scanning would be used for identification of candidates.
To prevent any malpractice, Prasanna confirmed that all 775 exam centres across Karnataka will be monitored via CCTV surveillance, with real-time webcasting to ensure transparency. He also stated that district-level officials, including Deputy Commissioners and Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Panchayats, will oversee the process.
Highlighting the importance of the CET as an opportunity to improve rankings, Prasanna urged students not to skip the exam, even if they had underperformed or failed in their PU exams.
In the coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, a total of 30,614 students are expected to appear for the CET on April 16 and 17, across 66 designated examination centres.
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India proposes preferential trade agreement with Mexico to deal with high tariffs
New Delhi (PTI): India has proposed a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with Mexico to help domestic exporters deal with the steep tariffs announced by the South American country, a top government official said on Monday.
Mexico has decided to impose steep import tariffs - ranging from about 5 per cent to as high as 50 per cent on a wide range of goods (about 1,463 tariff lines) from countries that do not have free trade agreements with Mexico, including India, China, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said that India has engaged with the country on the issue.
"Technical level talks are on...The only fast way forward is to try to get a preferential trade agreement (PTA) because an FTA (free trade agreement) will take a lot of time. So we are trying to see what can be a good way forward," he told reporters here.
While in an FTA two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate import duties on maximum number of goods traded between them, in a PTA, duties are cut or removed on a limited number of products.
Trading partners of Mexico cannot file a compliant against the decision on imposing high tariffs as they are WTO (World Trade Organisation) compatible.
The duties are within their bound rates, he said, adding that their primary target was not India.
"We have proposed a PTA because its a WTO-compatible way forward... we can do a PTA and try to get concessions that are required for Indian supply chains and similarly offer them concessions where they have export interests in India," Agrawal said.
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Citing support for local production and correction of trade imbalances, Mexico has approved an increase in MFN (most favoured nation) import tariffs (5-50 per cent) with effect from January 1, 2026 on 1,455 tariff lines (or product categories) within the WTO framework, targeting non-FTA partners.
Preliminary estimates suggest that this affects India's around USD 2 billion exports to Mexico particularly -- automobile, two-wheelers, auto parts, textiles, iron and steel, plastics, leather and footwear.
The measure is also aimed at curbing Chinese imports.
India-Mexico merchandise trade totalled USD 8.74 billion in 2024, with exports USD 5.73 billion, imports USD 3.01 billion, and a trade surplus of USD 2.72 billion.
The government has been continuously and comprehensively assessing Mexico's tariff revisions since the issue emerged, engaging stakeholders, safeguarding the interests of Indian exporters, and pursuing constructive dialogue to ensure a stable trade environment benefiting businesses and consumers in both countries.
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Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai has said that Mexico's decision is a matter of concern, particularly for sectors like automobiles and auto components, machinery, electrical and electronics, organic chemicals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and plastics.
"Such steep duties will erode our competitiveness and risk, disrupting supply chains that have taken years to develop," Sahai said, adding that this development also underlines the little urgency for India and Mexico to fast-track a comprehensive trade agreement.
Domestic auto component manufacturers will face enhanced cost pressures with Mexico hiking duties on Indian imports, according to industry body ACMA.
