Male candidates were expected to come in for the exams only wearing half-sleeved shirts and pants. Shoes were a strict no inside the exam hall. They could not wear watches and could only use doctor prescribed lens spectacles inside the hall. It was, even more, hassling for the girls, who were also expected to wear half-sleeved Kurti/top with leggings/pants. They were barred from wearing any sort of accessories. Even burkas and kurta pajamas were prohibited from being worn.
While some of the candidates were pre-informed, most of them attended the exams with no idea as to what the rules were. Many male students who had arrived with full-sleeved shirts had to customize it themselves by cutting off the sleeves. Those who came in with shoes had to leave them behind and go in barefoot. It was extremely stressful for the children to find themselves put under such a special test before the actual test began.
Some of the female candidates found themselves put in rather humiliating situations. Some of the girls had to forcibly remove their earrings and others had to purchase proper pants and tops minutes before the exam started. The most disturbing story was that of the girl who attended her exams in Kannur. While passing through the metal detectors, the girl set off the alarms because of the metal hook in her top innerwear. She was made to remove her innerwear and hand it over to her mother.
