CAT Day 2: No lessons learnt,glitches add to aspirants’ stress

Nearly 80 students who reached their test centre — Heritage Institute of Technology — were told that they have to appear on a later date as one of the computer labs was not functioning.

“I reached the examination centre two hours before the test was supposed to start at 3.30 in the afternoon. I was told that I cannot appear for the examination today as the computer system of Lab 9,where I was supposed to sit for the examination,is not functioning,” said Moulina Kuiti,a student of Bengal Institute of Technology.

Moulina,a student of engineering at the West Bengal University of Technology,said her semester examination will start from December 8 and if the CAT is postponed after December,she would not be able to take the test.

“Since the problem persisted on second day also,students are really worried now. It is a competitive examination and students cannot be turned away from the examination centres,” said Rahul Reddy,Director of TIME,a training institute for CAT aspirants. He said no one is responding to these problems,something which is worrying the students most.

On http://www.catiim.in,the website for CAT,Prometric — the American firm entrusted with the task of conducting the tests,has written that the students who could not appear in the test will be duly informed about their rescheduled date of examination.

“To avoid inconvenience and to allow the necessary repair work to be completed at the impacted labs,Prometric has scheduled a closure of these labs on Sunday 29,November 2009. Candidates affected by this closure will also be notified by Prometric in the manner described above and provided with new appointments within this year’s testing period,” the website said.

Experts say it would be a challenge to accommodate all the students to appear for their tests by December 7. Meanwhile,criticisms against Prometric and IIMs are becoming more vocal.

“There were neither dry runs of the system nor it appears that there was any back-up plan. It appears that the labs in which the examinations are scheduled are ill-equipped. Actually,even my colleagues at IIM who were in-charge did not envisage that such problems will emerge,” said a professor at IIM-Calcutta.