As the country is battling the second wave of COVID-19, educational institutions have been shut again, due to lockdowns and other restrictions enforced by state governments to stop the spread of the virus. Entrance exams for admission to different professional programmes have also been postponed. These include four medical exams – National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET PG), the Diplomate of National Board Post-Diploma Centralised Entrance Test (DNB PDCET) 2021, the Institute of National Importance Combined Entrance Test (INI CET 2021), and the All India Ayush Post Graduate Entrance Examination (AIAPGET) 2021.
Here are the latest updates from the exam conducting authorities:
NEET PG 2021
NEET PG 2021 was originally scheduled for April 18 but the Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on April 15 announced the entrance exam has been postponed until further notice, in view of the current situation of COVID-19.
Later, in May, the Prime Minister's office said the postgraduate medical exam will not be held before August 31 and students will be notified at least one month in advance about the new exam date. This has been done to increase the number of medical personnel available for COVID duty.
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Doctors who will appear for the NEET PG exam this year, and final year MBBS students may be utilized to perform COVID duty, the government had said.
DNB PDCET 2021
As per the latest updates, DNB PDCET 2021 has been postponed following recent COVID-19 lockdown, night curfew, and containment orders issued in different parts of the country. The exam was scheduled for May 9.
New dates for the entrance exam will be announced later on the official website, the National Board of Examinations (NBE), which conducts the exam, had said.
The notification on the official website, natboard.edu.in, reads: Pursuant to the recent lockdown/ night curfew/ containment orders imposed in various parts of the country due to ongoing surge in COVID-19 cases and in order to avoid any inconvenience to the candidates in attending the examination and to ensure their safety amidst such pandemic, the National Board of Examinations (NBE), in continuation of its notice dated 23.04.2021, has decided to defer the conduct of DNB PDCET 2021 till further notice.
INI CET 2021
The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in April postponed the INI CET 2021 exam. The new date has not been announced yet. The exam was earlier scheduled for May 8. The revised date will be announced on the official website, aiimsexams.ac.in.
The PG Medical exam will be held for admission to MD, MS, DM (6 years), MCh, MDS, and other courses for the July session. The participating institutes include AIIMS Delhi, AIIMS Rishikesh, and JIPMER Puducherry.
AIAPGET 2021
The National Testing Agency (NTA) on May 5 postponed AIAPGET 2021 scheduled for June 7. The new date for the exam will be announced at a later stage, the NTA said.
AIAPGET is conducted by the NTA, on behalf of the Ministry of AYUSH, for admissions to MD, MS and PG Diploma in Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy courses.
Candidates can visit the official website, nta.ac.in for the latest updates. For further clarification related to AIAPGET 2021, candidates can also contact at 011-40759000.
