West Bengal scraps WBJEE decentralised counselling 2026 admission rule amid backlash

Amid concerns over the WBJEE decentralised counselling 2026 rule for engineering admissions, the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examinations Board (WBJEE) has allowed candidates to participate in the process even if a seat has been allotted to them in previous rounds.

As per the WB board notification, candidates who had already taken admission in the WBJEE centralised online counselling process were not allowed to participate in the common online decentralised counselling process.

However, amid backlash, the WBJEE board has decided to scrap the rule.

WBJEE will soon issue a revised WBJEE decentralised counselling brochure after modifying the necessary provisions for BTech and BArch admissions on its official website at wbjeeb.nic.in/wbjee/. Also, a revised counselling schedule will be announced.

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WBJEE rolls back decentralised admission criteria

WBJEE counselling brochure noted that a candidate who has been allotted a seat will no longer be able to participate or even upgrade their seat in the decentralised admission process. However, following backlash from teachers’ and students’ groups, the board will revise the rules and publish a new brochure.

Moreover, the Jadavpur University Teachers' Association (JUTA) also raised concerns over the provisions of Class 12 mark eligibility for engineering admission, pointing out the criteria, labelling it as a dilution of eligibility criteria for counselling.

JUTA highlighted that students with high WBJEE or JEE ranks should be allowed to participate in counselling and even upgrade to a better engineering branch rather than lose their seat to a Class 12 marks-based student or even to someone with a lower rank.

WBJEE counselling process is based on candidates’ WBJEE or Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main rank.