JEE Main : The Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education, Government of India has announced major changes in the structure and administration of JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) for admission to  engineering programs at IITs, NITs and other Centrally Funded Technical Institutes. (CFTI). The changes were outlined in a recent notice and will take effect in 2024 and 2025. 

In a partial amendment to the previous notification, an important change relates to the role and tasks of the National Testing Agency (NTA)  in managing the technical aspects of the studies. The reorganization of the JEE Apex Board (JAB) is aimed at ensuring a smoother and more  efficient process for conducting both the JEE mains and JEE (Advanced) entrance exams. 

The newly formed JEE Apex Board has a permanent secretariat under the responsibility of the National Testing Agency (NTA). In addition, the JEB will be assisted in its duties by a JEE Interface Group consisting of five members from NTA, IITs and a senior representative of the Indian Statistical Institutes (ISI) appointed by the Joint Apex Board. 

JAB acts as the apex body responsible for framing the conduct policies, rules and regulations for  JEE mains. It  also collaborates with the  JEE (Advanced) conducting body. The Secretariat handles various administrative functions such as finance, legal and RTI matters.

NTA plays a vital role in providing administrative and logistical support for the JEE examination across the country. The JAB Permanent Secretariat, located at the NTA, will use the existing infrastructure, financial resources and human resources of the existing JEE (Main) Unit, and additional posts, including an Executive Director, will be created as needed. 

It is important to note that the JAB and#40;JAB-IT and#41 of the NT system; is still responsible for conducting the JEE (Advanced) exam. In addition, National Informatics Center (NIC) and Center for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC)  provide essential technological support and handle back-end functions including  online submission of application forms. 

The revamped administrative framework aims to ensure transparency and efficiency in the entire JEE examination process. These changes, led by the Ministry of Education, are expected to contribute to the fair and smooth conduct of  entrance exams and provide opportunities for engineering students.