Centre Lets JEE Main Candidates Shift From April 5 Exam Over Easter Conflict

Overview

• India’s government will allow JEE Main 2026 candidates who cannot sit the April 5 paper because of Easter to request a new date, with applications due March 28, 2026.
• Students must email their details to jeemain.query@nta.ac.in to seek a new slot, which creates a targeted fix rather than a blanket reschedule.
• The step follows appeals from Christian groups during Holy Week, including a representation by Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, after which Minister Suresh Gopi sought intervention from the prime minister and the education minister.
• Suresh Gopi said Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told him by phone that such candidates would get a chance to change dates, addressing concerns about access during a major religious observance.
• The second JEE Main phase runs April 2–10, and separate reporting notes NTA has removed the April 9 sitting and issued city intimation slips for April 2, 4–8.