I am a first time tax assessee for last F.Y. 2023-24. I want to opt for old tax regime and want to continue the same for future years. Do I need to first fill and submit the Form 10 IEA declaring regime selection of Old Tax Regime followed by ITR submission? Kindly clarify. Thank you

Ans: Dear Mr. Ramesh Congrats , Your son has scored well,secured high rank in CRL & OBC NCL hence he can get admission in any top NIT . As far my suggestion is concerned ,most NITs are good ,however he can opt for Trichy or Rourkela .

Ans: All 3 are good options. However, the order of preference can be 1) KIET University, Ghaziabad 2) JSS University/JSSATE Noida 3) GL Bajaj, Greater Noida. KIET is now a Deemed-to-be University, has NAAC A+, NBA-accredited programmes and appears in NIRF 2025 Engineering 151–200 band, making it the strongest overall option. JSS Noida is also good, with NIRF 2025 rank band of 201–300, AICTE approval and a decent NCR location advantage. GL Bajaj has strong placement marketing, but overall academic brand/ranking is slightly behind KIET/JSS. ALL the BEST for Your Prosperous Future!

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Ans: You have not mentioned your JEE Main percentile to answer precisely. Anyway, please note that the safer and more realistic choice is to take CSE at NIT Agartala and NOT drop. A drop is only worth it if you are confident about a major rank jump and can stick to a strict plan. Otherwise, you risk wasted time, mental pressure, and no better outcome. With NIT-A-CSE already in hand, it is better to build coding skills and placements there than to live with the “what?if” of an uncertain drop year. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: Based on your son's score, your son has excellent chances in DTU IT / Mathematics & Computing and NSUT IT / Mathematics & Computing. IIIT-Delhi is more competitive: 2025 Round-5 Delhi General closing ranks were around CSAM 2,254, CSE 1,413, CSD 2,606, so IIIT-D CS/Maths may be difficult unless bonus points apply. The best order of preference is IIIT-D: Computer Science & Applied Mathematics/Computer Science & Design → DTU: Information Technology → DTU: Mathematics & Computing → NSUT: Information Technology/Mathematics & Computing → DTU: Software Engineering/Computer Science-related branches. Additionally, reviewing JAC-Delhi opening and closing ranks from the past 2–3 years will provide valuable insights and help your son confidently select and fill his preferred & maximum number of choices. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: Sushma, If you are comfortable with core electronics, telecom, VLSI, and IT/IT?related roles, NIT Agartala ECE is the better choice over NIT Patna EIE. Prefer NIT-A-ECE over NIT-P-EIE. ALL the BEST for Your Prosperous Future!

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Ans: Medha, please make sure you will be able to manage everything: doing MPC through the State Board, BIPC through distance mode, and, at the same time, preparing for the NEET exam. This step can be very stressful and is NOT at all recommended. Anyway, answering your question, please note that, legally, doing both streams is usually allowed if they are from different boards. However, you should take written confirmation from the Telangana State Board, the distance?board, and KNRUHS (Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences) or the NEET?Telangana guidelines before you start, so that you do not face any TOC or eligibility problems later. ALL the BEST for Your Prosperous Future!

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Ans: With 97.81 percentile, CRL 34,704 and OBC-NCL rank 9,867, your son has a fair chance in NITs/IIITs, but CSE in top NITs is unlikely. For NIT Andhra Pradesh home-state quota, CSE may be difficult because recent OBC CSE cut-offs are usually much lower, but he may have chances in ECE, Electrical, Mechanical, Civil, Chemical, Biotechnology or Metallurgy, especially in later rounds/CSAB. Good IIIT options your son can try: IIIT Sri City, IIIT Kottayam, IIIT Dharwad, IIIT Kalyani, IIIT Bhagalpur, IIIT Una, IIIT Bhopal, IIIT Nagpur for CSE/ECE/AI-related branches. Additionally, reviewing JoSAA opening and closing ranks from the past 2–3 years will provide valuable insights and help your son confidently select and fill his preferred & maximum number of choices. If possible, have 3-4 backup options of reputed Private Engineering Colleges & State Engineering Counselling. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: You have not mentioned your son's home state to provide backup options precisely. According to last year's closing rank, it was 4692 for the SC Category candidate. So, CSE Dual Degree is almost impossible even in later rounds. Also fill ECE, Mechanical, Smart Manufacturing, and Design Engineering if interested, but chances at IIITDM Kancheepuram remain low. You can still try through JoSAA. However, it is advisable to have the following backup options: State Counselling, Government/Self-financing engineering Colleges, Private colleges, diploma-to-B.Tech lateral route, and CSAB special rounds for lower-demand GFTIs/IIITs. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: Preference list in the sense—are you asking about your preferred institution or your preferred branch? You have not mentioned your home state or your gender either. It is advisable to choose the branch you are more interested in or passionate about over the institution. Now, answering your question, please note, with CRL 27,293, top NIT CSE is difficult, but CSE/IT in good IIITs is realistic. Your best JoSAA preference order should be IIIT Sri City CSE, IIIT Sri City AI & Data Science, IIIT Una CSE, IIIT Kottayam CSE or CSE-AI, IIIT Kalyani CSE, IIIT Dharwad CSE, IIIT Bhagalpur CSE, NIT Raipur CSE if home-state applies, NIT Patna CSE-related specialisations, and then ECE/IT branches in NIT Hamirpur, NIT Jalandhar, NIT Silchar, NIT Agartala and NIT Meghalaya. IIIT Sri City CSE and AI branches closed around 24k–25k in recent rounds, so it is a borderline but strong option to keep high in preference. Also participate in CSAB special rounds for better chances. Additionally, reviewing JoSAA opening and closing ranks from the past 2–3 years will provide valuable insights and help your son confidently select and fill his preferred & maximum number of choices. ALL the BEST for Your Prosperous Future!

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