The CAT Carnival is back...

Surrounded by all the anxieties and bewilderment, amidst all the speculation , the CAT carnival - 2009 has begun . The trumpet has been blown and the gun has been fired . The race has begun ....

In the April , the IIMs announces that CAT will be going online , much to the disappointment of the students as well as coaching classes. Yet, we all had to embrace the change whether we liked it or not. The Profs need some break from the admission procedure to concentrate on research and academic . Truly, I also feel same. With CAT going online, a lot many coaching institutes till now unknown, made to the limelight. Now, with the minimum of the infra , they can sustain themselves... hmm .. IIMs promoting Entrepreneurship !!! Well, the throne of the established brands .. will take some time to destabilize. Yet, they came out with their own online versions and mocks. I really feel sorry for the student who was the mute witness of all the tamasha going around him . Yes, he was the one whose career was at stake. The years of labor and dream of the family ( we all know , in Indian Middle class ,IIM and IIT entrance tests are not an individual's dream but always a family's dream ). He was the one who was standing in the desert and looking towards the sky to find the faintest of shadow of the Pole Star so that he can get to know the direction to move.
After, a long wait , came the CAT notification on 30 Aug, acclaiming that the IIMs are going paper-less , the fact quite evident from the advertisement, which barely gave any important dates other than the date and location for purchase of the voucher. All the ways lead to the address www.catiim.in . A few announcements , one demo video was all one can get at the site.The students were left to imagine on their own .
The day was 09-sep-2009 , the date when the voucher selling was to be start at a few selected locations.My God! There were more than 200 people standing in the line at the gate of the bank , even before the bank has opened. This fits with the "Grand Opening ceremony of the Olympics".Anyway , people get their turn and bought the vouchers. Rushes to the computer ... Yes.. we have to race against others .. first lap, to book test slot . Get your favorite venue and date, soon , they will be evaporating from the choice list. Go Prometric site and register your application. But, the world-leader in Online Tests , experienced of handling GRE and GMAT boasted in their cv , but, none can match the CAT. I assume more than a lakh hits made to their site , their server cannot handle this . No they can't . This is "Annual CAT Festival". Lakhs of devotees , a mere 1200 seats at stake. Its a do or die situation for many. Not just to get a license to a good life, fame and money , but , to prove oneself , to prove that yes, I too stand there , amidst the few , those immortals whose success stories are the dinner-talk at too many houses , the younger generations burdened with the expectation to outperform them .
Anyways , each one got his chance to fill the application ,many in their 20th attempt. No wonder they made the mistake final time -- the time when it mattered the most -- anyone could have got annoyed with the lost server connections. People did what they are always best at -- make mistakes. The software was of throw-away quality looking as if it is a summer project of any graduating student -- No validations for necessary fields , no edit facility , and no summary at the end. It was further complicated with the technical issues . All the time , it was the poor student at the receiving end. Moreover, they were asked to buy the new voucher and re-register themselves. Clearly, it was a mess all around . The entrance test to select the future managers and who's who of corporate India , was left unmanaged .
Well,mails flowed and calls made. Umpteen number of people approached the Mighty IIMs to consider about the plight of the students. Finally, a cordial agreement was reached to allow the applicants to edit their application. Many breathe the fresh air . Their heart started pumping oxygenated blood once again . But , I still wonder , institution like IIM , still it didn't came to their mind to provide every individual applicant with an email account and give him to receive and direct every mails pertaining to CAT. The start of the application manual mentions in bold letter - "You must have a valid e-mail id for whole of the selection process". We trust Google more than ourselves , it has made us independent on itself . It is the one which has destroyed the world , her intellectuals . Each and every student types Google to look for their assignments. Every software looks to that. How did the IIMs came to trust of Google or Gmail more than itself, that it forgot to provide any email account to the applicants , leaving them at the mercy of the public e-mail domains. God forbid, but , may Gmail server goes out of service ,who will be responsible for it . The worst was the lack of attribute for "secondary email Address". No field was there to provide a secondary address , in case one fails , we have a back up with us. Surely, every event management course will stress on the need to keep a back up plan . How come the so-called best institutes forget it ? Quite , unbelievable and shameful for them , for us .
Well , a man learns from mistake and I do appreciate the initiative they taken . I was pipeline for years , and it should have been properly planned, tested and verified before bringing on to production .
God knows , whats in store on the D-day. How will they manage such a big database of questions, how will they ship out the exam each day each session with same difficulty level . The more you think of it , the more baffled you are .We will see it in days to come. I am not against improvement, I am not against modernization. But, Surely, I am against a step taking without prior planning and testing. Nothing is fool proof, but yes , the measure to which one is surely make some better than other.
We will be back with some more once, the athletes of the race assemble in the Olympic Village - the centre . The rules and strategies have changed , but , one thing that hasn't changed is cut-throat competition . It is the best ever-game I have played , the strategies of chess and cards , the stamina of marathon, the defense of cricket , the attack of soccer , the speed of F1 and brutality of war.
May only the BEST mouse survive .