New rules stump hopefuls in Kota IIT factories

He is not an exception. The new rules, announced in mid-session, have left thousands here confused.

‘‘There are at least 5,000 students in various institutes of Kota who do not have a first division. They have already spent a lot of time and money on preparations. Now they are desperate,’’ said B V Krishnam Raju, in-charge of Narayana IIT Academy.

‘‘They want to quit coaching and go back home. Some of them have gone into depression. We are asking their parents to take them home to ensure that they do not take any drastic steps,’’ Raju said.

Others, who decided to take the exams again, hoping for a better rank, are at a loose end as well. ‘‘This is a serious injustice to them,’’ said Manoj Sharma, General Manager of Resonance Coaching Institute. He said he might challenge the new rules in court.

The students from Bihar would suffer the most, said Sharma. ‘‘It is very difficult to secure 60 per cent in the Bihar board exams. But ever year many students from Bihar qualify for the exam, when those with even 80 per cent in the CBSE fail,’’ he said.

‘‘The coaching institutes will not run out of students. There are dozens of other entrance exams,’’ said Pramod Bansal, director of Bansal Classes.

Coaching lobby crying foul: Arjun

New Delhi: There is no need to review the changes declared yesterday in the selection process for IITs, Union Minister for HRD Arjun Singh said.

‘‘It is the coaching institutes which are worried… and making an issue out of it,’’ the minister said.

He added the government only accepted the recommendations made by experts, including the directors of IITs. ‘‘I don’t see them changing now,’’ the minister said.

Asked if the difference in standards between boards will create an unequal playing field, the minister said experts must have taken this into consideration. ‘‘We will see how the new system works,’’ he said. —ENS