THE IIT-JEE '08...

Yes this is about the so called "Toughest paper for Engg in India" - "Indian Institute of Technology('s) -Joint Entrance Examination". Now that they have set a restriction of giving the exam only twice (one just after XII & one one year after XII), I thought, well why waste the last chance. Before you start screaming, "Ohh you gave JEE!!! You are so brilliant etc.. etc...", well I didn't study for it. Yes. I didn't prepare for the exam for which others prepare for 2+ years. So no questions about how it went.
Still unlike the last time, this was memorable for various reasons. Like:

-> The Date: Apart from being the "13th", it was the first weekend we had after our Test Series-II (Poor guys who were actually preparing for it). Also on the same day, there was a ManU vs Arsenal match (EPL) in which ManU thrashed Arsenal 2-1 (obviously)!

-> The Venue: The center was V.M. Salgaocar College of Law, Miramar. The center was nearly as big as our CH1 hostel, with a canteen where you had to place an order in the morning if you wanted Fried Rice during the JEE break (thats all they served). The New Library was on the ground floor, as oppossed to the Old Library on the Top (3rd) Floor (More on this later). But the best thing was: It was next to the Miramar beach. Can you belive it? JEE center next to beach. Most of my friends went to the beach before coming to the center! :D

-> The Hype: JEE has always been hyped. And you can see that by the expression on any applicant's face (for a better idea look at his/her parents'). By 8:30 AM, the center was filled with nervous students cross checking their Admit Cards to see the seating plan, or doing the last minute revision, or listening to even more tensed parents telling them how to stay calm during the test. And the sight of students, all laughing as they entered the center, with "sand on their shoes" didn't make them feel any better.

-> The first 15 minutes: The seat allotted to me was in the New Library(Ground Floor). Or so the board said. You enter and are forced to go upstairs. "भईया New Libraray तो नीचे...". "सब ऊपर है बेटा... जल्दी चलो!". Fine. First Floor. Ask for directions for New Library and you get two answers: On your left, Top floor. " On you left" turns out to be the conference hall. " Top floor" turns out to be 'Old' Library. Well atleast it was a Library. There someone tells me New Library is "नीचे". Humm.. Now this is bugging.
We (ie me & a group of "1st time JEE givers") wander here and there only to find that the way to New Library is through the Conference Hall. And its "New" because it has those typical Sify Cyber Cafe like cubicles. Without computers ofcourse.

-> The Paper: I never liked the new pattern of the paper which replaced the old one. I mean it makes the paper "ordinary" - like any other engg. exam. All you need is a bit of speed, luck & lots of practise. No need to be clear with your basics or have the ability to think out of the box. That means IIT-JEE is no longer "THE IIT-JEE". And this time, there was even partial marking for the "Match the following" questions. Which ultimately means more marks for guessing (No negative marking in this type).
No comments on whether the paper was easy or tough - It only depends on how much you prepared.

-> The break: The 2 hour break is the most bugging part of JEE. Atleast for the serious applicants. Anyway me & my friends decide to go to the main market and have lunch. After a 5-minute bus ride and a short debate on "Isn't पनीर Butter मसाला better than मलाई कोफ्ता?", we order food. Good food. And we are done by 1:30! All plans of reaching 20 minutes late and then happily giving the rest of the paper shattered. Never mind.

-> The sounds: It was in the second half that I actually got bored of the paper. After sleeping for some 20 minutes, I was writing the pros & cons of giving JEE without studying. Well watching others all tensed while you go happily for the test was a big plus. So was the thoughts of finally having Domino's Pizza :). One of the biggest negative was sitting for three hours listening to the guy next to you tap his pencil on the table desperatly trying to play some tune. And failing badly. And the invigilator talking with some random guy for 15 minutes about "studies, tension & students" isn't fun either. So I instead concentrated my exhausted mind on deciphering which song was being played while a nearby car parked (Remember the "tee-tee-taa--tee-tee-taa--ti-ti-ta-ta-taaa..." tune every time the car reverses?). And I also learnt how to differentiate between a horn of a truck, bus, car & a bike. Not to forget the random chirping of birds and the sizzling sound of grass burning (The smell chokes)

-> Post JEE: Its fun to watch others write the paper seriously while to relax in your seat looking outside the window. What's even better is people asking, "How was IT?" and answering back "Amazing! Awesome! Phod diya! What simple paper re!". The expression on everyone's face is worth all 6 hours of time waste.
Anyway party time now. We decided to walk to the Domino's Pizza. Not a very good decision. The walk was very long and tiring, with the sun blazing above. And then 2 smart girls decided to go into the Reliance Web World. Not to ask about Recharge coupons. Not for a new broadband connection. To sit in the AC for a while. Yeah thats how we all are!
After a long walk and lots of misdirection, we finally reached Domino's. Filled our empty tummies with pizza (and saw 30 min of Liverpool vs Blackburn Match.. Final Score was 3-1). We return half asleep, still all proudly entering campus as if we had fought a tough war or something...

So well, JEE was fun (more fun was telling people about it and watching the amazed expression on their faces.. "You gave JEE?? Wow... Khool!!!") :D

Too long a post for a start. I guess I should learn how to summarize my thoughts. Or make a script for expanding titles. But how do you edit the HTML code of your post?? Been a long time away from Blogger it seems!
Enjoy!

PS: Finally learnt how to Edit Html. The button wasn't there when I opened it in Firefox :(