The coaching capital has played host to JEE Mains for three years in a row now. But it has once again been denied the pleasure of conducting JEE Advanced 2016.

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) used to conduct IIT-JEE in the town till 2010 but dropped it from the list of examinations centers in 2011, without citing any official reason. In 2014, the Board chose Kota to hold JEE Mains here. 

Interestingly, the cities hosting JEE Advanced have doubled in Rajasthan. The Board has recently released the list of cities in the state where JEE Advanced will be held on May 22, 2016. The list includes Alwar, Jaipur, Sikar, Ajmer, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Bhilwara, Tonk, Pali, and Barmer. Last year, JEE Advanced was held only in five cities – Jaipur, Jodhpur, Ajmer, Sikar, and Udaipur.

Kota alone boasts of 36,000 JEE Advanced aspirants this year, and they are upset at the coaching hub being given a miss. An aspirant Pallavi Kumari said that students like her would have benefitted if Kota had examination centers for JEE Advanced. “I will have to travel to another city to take the exam,” she complained.  

The coaching institutes are not amused either. Brajesh Maheshwari, Director of Allen Career Institute, Kota, said, “There are many aspirants from Kota, who will be taking the examination this year. It would be a problem for them to travel to other cities in the sweltering heat.” Shailendra Maheshwari, Director, Career Point Institute, was surprised at Kota not making it to the list of examination centers. “Kota has successfully hosted JEE Mains and other medical entrance examinations over the years. It would have been convenient for thousands of Advanced aspirants to appear at any local exam center in Kota. It would save time,” he said.