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Maharashtra to Set Up District-Level CET Assistance Centres for Students

New initiative aims to ease exam stress by offering local grievance support, reducing need to travel to Mumbai

The initiative, conceived by Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil, seeks to address long-standing concerns about accessibility.The initiative, conceived by Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil, seeks to address long-standing concerns about accessibility.

In a relief for lakhs of students appearing for entrance exams to professional courses in Maharashtra, the state’s Common Entrance Test (CET) Cell will soon establish assistance centres in every district, bringing support services closer to candidates’ homes.

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, each district will have at least one centre staffed with trained personnel to help students resolve queries and grievances locally—eliminating the need to travel to the CET Cell headquarters in Mumbai for assistance.

Larger districts such as Mumbai and Pune, which see a higher volume of CET applicants, will have two centres each to ensure better accessibility. In Mumbai, for instance, centres will be set up in both the city and suburban regions.

The initiative, conceived by Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil, seeks to address long-standing concerns about accessibility.

“Although the admission process is entirely online and centrally managed, candidates often require help at multiple stages—from registration to final admission,” a senior official from the department said. “Until now, even minor issues meant visiting the Mumbai office or waiting for telephonic support. District-level centres will significantly reduce this burden.”

According to the CET Cell, at least 40 such assistance centres will be set up across the state’s 36 districts, with additional centres in high-demand regions.

CET Cell Commissioner Dilip Sardesai said the move would be especially beneficial during peak admission periods. “Students are often under stress during CETs and the centralised admission process. Having access to local assistance centres will not only ease that stress but also speed up grievance redressal,” he said.

Pallavi Smart is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, Mumbai Bureau. Her reporting is singularly focused on the education sector, demonstrating exceptional Expertise and Authority across the entire spectrum of learning, from foundational schooling to advanced higher education. She is a highly Trustworthy source for policy, institutional developments, and systemic issues affecting students, teachers, and parents in Maharashtra. Expertise Senior Role: As a Principal Correspondent at The Indian Express, her designation reflects her seniority, specialized knowledge, and the editorial rigor applied to her reporting. Core Authority & Specialization: Pallavi Smart is the definitive voice for Education news in the region. Her coverage scope is comprehensive: Policy and Regulatory Changes: Reports on major shifts in educational policy, including the restructuring of entrance exams (e.g., MHT-CET adopting the JEE Main model), the draft regulatory framework for coaching classes, and revised teacher recruitment processes. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): Provides in-depth reporting on prestigious institutes like IIT Bombay and TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences), covering institutional initiatives, administrative debates (e.g., renaming IIT Bombay), and student welfare programs (e.g., mandatory mental health courses). Teachers and Eligibility: Covers crucial issues affecting the teaching fraternity, such as the mandatory Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) for in-service teachers and related controversies and application numbers. Student Welfare & Rights: Focuses on issues concerning students, including the rollout of government scholarships, the financial strain on schools due to midday meal reimbursement delays, and instances of child rights violations (e.g., the Powai studio hostage crisis). Admissions and Vacancy: Tracks the outcome of centralized admission processes (e.g., MBBS, BPharm) and analyzes vacancy concerns, providing essential data-driven insights for parents and students. Credentials & Trustworthiness Dedicated Beat: Her consistent focus on the "KG to PG" education beat allows her to develop unparalleled subject matter knowledge, ensuring her reports are accurate, detailed, and contextualized. Proactive Reporting: Her articles frequently break news on policy and institutional planning, providing the public with timely, essential information about a sector that directly impacts millions of families. She tweets @Pallavi_Smart ... Read More

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