Covid-19: Admission criteria for NIT, CFTI relaxed; minimum 75% marks in Class 12 not required

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Centre on Thursday announced relaxation in norms for admissions into National Institutes of Technology (NIT) and centrally funded technical institutions (CFTI).

Now, students will be considered for admissions into NITs and CFTIs based solely on their performance in the Joint Entrance Examination-Advanced, irrespective of the marks they obtain in the Class 12 examination.

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Earlier, a student desirous of seeking admission to NIT or CFTI was required to secure minimum 75 per cent marks in the Class 12 examination, in addition to clearing of JEE-Advanced.

The relaxation in admission norms will be valid for the current year.

“Due to the prevailing circumstances, the Central Seat Allocation Board (CSAB) has decided to relax the eligibility criterion for admissions to the National Institutes of Technology and other Centrally Funded Technical Institutions (CFTIs),” HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said.

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For admissions in NITs and other CFTIs, apart from qualifying Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main, the eligibility usually is to secure a minimum of 75 per cent marks in XII board exams or rank among the top 20 percentile in the institutes’ qualifying examinations, he added.

Last week, the HRD ministry had also relaxed the eligibility criteria for admission to the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) this year by not considering Class XII board performance.

Due to the partial cancellation of class XII exams by several education boards, the Joint Admission Board (JAB) had decided to relax the eligibility criterion for JEE (Advanced) 2020 qualified candidates this time.

Qualified candidates who have passed class XII examinations will now be eligible for admissions irrespective of marks obtained in the board exams.