Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee on Thursday ruled out relaxing the 75% eligibility criterion for JEE admissions this year despite concerns surrounding the ongoing CBSE marks row.
Responding to questions on whether the institute was considering a one-time relaxation in marks for affected students, IIT Roorkee said such a move would not be feasible as candidates from 36 different education boards participate in the admission process.
Speaking to news agency ANI, IIT Roorkee said, “No relaxing in marks as candidates from 36 different boards are participating. We published this criterion almost in December and last year there were candidates who lost IIT/NIT seats mainly due to percentages.”
The institute added that reducing the cut-off at this stage could create fairness and uniformity concerns across boards.
IITs in touch with CBSE over affected students
While ruling out any reduction in the eligibility benchmark, IIT Roorkee said it remains in close contact with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to help resolve issues faced by affected candidates.
“Lowering is not possible; however, we are in close touch with CBSE and will try to resolve this for all those affected candidates on priority,” IIT Roorkee said.
This development comes amid growing concerns among students over discrepancies and issues linked to board examination results, which may impact eligibility for admissions into premier engineering institutes.
75% criterion remains mandatory for IIT and NIT admissions
Under existing rules, candidates seeking admission to IITs and NITs through the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) must secure at least 75% marks in their Class 12 board examinations or rank among the top performers in their respective boards.
The eligibility criterion was reintroduced after being temporarily relaxed during the COVID-19 pandemic years.
Last year, several candidates reportedly lost admission opportunities despite clearing JEE due to not meeting the required board examination percentage criteria.