Indore: Around 2,000 engineering aspirants from Indore appeared for the Joint Entrance Examination (Advanced) 2026 on Sunday at four centers in the city, while many others traveled to Bhopal and Ujjain after being allotted centers outside Indore.
Examination Structure
The examination was conducted in two shifts, with Paper 1 held from 9 am to 12 noon and Paper 2 from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm. Appearing in both papers was mandatory, as ranks for admission to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) are prepared on the basis of combined scores in both papers. Admissions are conducted through Joint Seat Allocation Authority counseling, while JEE Main serves only as a screening examination to shortlist eligible candidates for JEE Advanced.
Difficulty Level and Subject Analysis
According to students and experts, the overall paper was moderate to tough, with mathematics emerging as the most difficult and time-consuming section. Physics was rated moderate to difficult due to concept-heavy and calculation-based questions, while chemistry was comparatively balanced and scoring despite involving lengthy calculations in physical chemistry.
JEE expert Vijit Jain said, “Overall, the paper was tough and highly conceptual. Mathematics was particularly lengthy, while physics required deep understanding instead of direct formula application.” He added that mechanics, electrodynamics, thermodynamics, optics, and modern physics had a strong presence in the paper.
Student Experiences
Students said Paper 2 appeared tougher than Paper 1 and time management became crucial because of negative marking patterns. “The questions were not straightforward. Even chemistry required careful calculations this time,” said an aspirant Raghav Sharma.
Several candidates also expressed concern over traveling in extreme heat conditions. “I was allotted a center in Bhopal and had to leave a day earlier. The travel itself was exhausting before such an important exam,” said Priyanshi Dubey, another candidate.
Conducting Institute and Result Timeline
The paper was prepared by Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, which had also conducted JEE Advanced in 2019 under the rotational system followed among the original seven IITs. Since the examination is conducted online, the official question paper PDF is expected to be uploaded on the JEE Advanced website by late Sunday night or Monday morning.
