Date:10/07/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/07/10/stories/2004071008670400.htm

Tamil Nadu

Entrance test: court extends date for submitting applications

By A. Subramani

CHENNAI, JULY 9. The Madras High Court today extended by five days the last date for submitting filled-in applications for the common entrance test to be conducted by the consortium of unaided professional colleges in the State.

Justice D. Murugesan stated that students could send in applications till July 15 instead of the original deadline of July 10. The common entrance examination of the Consortium of Self-Financing Professional, Arts and Science Colleges in Tamil Nadu for admissions under the management quota is scheduled for July 24.

On June 2, the Permanent Committee constituted for the conduct of Common Entrance Test authorised the consortium to hold the test, but laid down 25 conditions.

In the present batch of writ petitions, the consortium assailed seven specific conditions relating to the committee's insistence on the single window system for counselling and admissions, reservation, the TN Professional Courses Entrance Examination-type procedure, prior approval for question papers, etc.

On June 29, Mr. Justice Murugesan reserved orders on the petitions after listening to submissions of several senior counsel including Rajeev Dhavan and R. Krishnamoorthy, besides the Advocate-General, N.R. Chandran.

However, the matter was reopened for further hearing today after counsel for the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), Vijay Narayan, sought leave for the same.

Today, Mr. Vijay Narayan submitted that no State-level bodies could authorise any association to hold common entrance tests in other States. Referring to the permission granted to the consortium to hold CET at Vijayawada and Cochin, he said the AICTE had its own arrangement for admissions on all-India basis.

Students willing to join institutions in other States could do so only based on a merit list drawn up by the AICTE after an all-India entrance examination, he added.

However, Mr. Dhavan wanted to know why the AICTE was silent on its preparations for an all-India test when, according to its counsel, details including brochures had been finalised as early as in January 2004.

Mr. Krishnamoorthy said in several States associations of unaided colleges had completed the process and even admitted students.

Disputed questions case

Meanwhile, the First Bench, comprising the Chief Justice B. Subhashan Reddy and Justice Prabha Sridevan, began hearing on a batch of appeals against a single judge order in the "22 disputed questions case."

Senior counsel P. Jayaraman said the single judge awarded marks to even questions having more than one answer, but failed to extend the benefit uniformly to all subjects.

Advocate R. Viduthalai said it was up to the court to decide whether it could handle the matter on its own or to refer it to a committee. He, however, found fault with the Anna University for the TNPCEE-related confusion.

Pointing out that the university had been conducting the TNPCEE for the past 18 years, he said only during the past three years serious problems were coming to courts. "Whether it is an inadvertent error or something more than that is not known," he said.

He was also of the view that deletion or non-valuation of questions after the examinations are over would lead to manipulation of marks affecting the merit list of deserving students badly.

The arguments, which remained inconclusive today, would continue on Monday.