Friday, July 16, 2010
Bangalore: Diploma students aspiring for an engineering seat this year through the Common Entrance Test (CET) on Thursday heaved a sigh of relief when the court struck down the new rules relating to lateral entry and upheld the old system.

Under lateral entry, diploma students were allotted seats directly for third semester in second year BE. This system of lateral entry was first introduced in Karnataka in 2001 and it was subsequently upheld by the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), which is the apex body monitoring technical education in the country. This system of lateral entry was modified this year when the State issued a notification on June 9, 2010, that worked to their disadvantage.

Several diploma students, including A. Sunil, petitioned the High Court, challenging the new notification. The petitioners said the new rule had no sanction of the law and that it was yet to be notified. They urged the court to strike down the new notification.