The idea may have been to simplify and speed things up, but the Karnataka Examination Authority’s (KEA) decision to allow students to upload their documents and give their choice of college and course online for counselling post the Common Entrance Test (CET) for admission to professional colleges, has created its own set of problems.
You only need to visit the KEA Facebook page to see that students are having trouble signing in and uploading the various details online. Some complain they are not able to even log in successfully. "I can't log in to the page as I am told I have entered an invalid user name every time," says Ramesh S (name changed), who is also unhappy that the website does not display the names of colleges or seats available.
Pre-University Board director, Rashmi Mahesh, when contacted, however, brushed aside the problems. "If you have half a lakh students uploading their documents onto the website, it is bound to slow everything down," she contended, claiming the real problem was that students needed to scan documents and upload them in parts. "Many may upload a photograph when they need to upload details, or upload fingerprints when they have been asked for a signature. This sort of thing, along with the rise in the number of applications this year, has slowed down the website," she added. Ms Mahesh, however, assured that if a student had made two payments, he/she would get a refund during counselling. "If students have had to refresh the page and make an extra payment, they must come to the counselling session with both receipts. The second payment will be refunded," she promised.