Delhi University kicks off online exams amid digital divide concerns

Despite opposition from students and teachers, the University will conduct the exams between August 10 and August 31 for 240,000 final year students, including those enrolled with the School of Open Learning (SoL) and Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB).

From arranging power backup to borrowing mobile devices, from moving to relatives or friends’ houses to planning a visit to neighbourhood cyber cafes, students of Delhi University (DU) are taking several measures to appear for the online open-book exams (OBE), which will begin Monday as a one-time measure in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The University on Friday got the green signal from the Delhi high court to conduct the online tests. (Sanchit Khanna/HT file photo. Representative image)

Despite opposition from students and teachers, the University will conduct the exams between August 10 and August 31 for 240,000 final year students, including those enrolled with the School of Open Learning (SoL) and Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB).

The University on Friday got the green signal from the Delhi high court to conduct the online tests.

Amal K Simon, a final-year student of Ramjas College, said he and his friends are stuck in parts of rain-hit districts in Kerala and have tried to make arrangements to ensure their exams are not hindered.

“Many of us have arranged power banks for mobile phones, because we face regular power cuts due to the rain. Many of my friends have moved to their relatives or friends’ houses in the city for better internet connectivity. I will go to my friend’s house on Monday morning because they have power backup and Wi-Fi,” he said.

Students with disabilities will get two additional hours to complete the exam instead of one.

However, many students remain concerned over the feasibility of the exams. Mohit (who goes by a single name), 21, a final-year BA (prog) student at SoL, said the poor internet connectivity at his Sangam Vihar home does not allow him to even upload and email answer scripts.

“I do not have a laptop at home, so I will either go to a cyber cafe or borrow my neighbour’s laptop,” he said.

Hitesh Sharma, 20, a final-year student of BA (Hons) in Political Science at Rajdhani College, said he is stuck at his house in Jammu’s Kathua district. “We only get 2G connectivity here. It takes us so long to even download pictures on WhatsApp. How will I download the question paper and upload the answer scripts from here? My parents have not allowed me to go to the common service centre (CSC) due to the prevailing situation,” he said.

CSCs are facilities created under the ministry of electronics and information technology for users to access government services online.

Despite several attempts, DU dean of examination Vinay Gupta did not respond for comment.

A member of the University’s examination department, who asked not to be named, said, “The university is prepared for the smooth conduct of the online examinations. We have appointed nodal officers in all colleges who will assist students. Students can approach them for help throughout the exam. The colleges and departments also have their separate email IDs, on which students can directly send PDFs of their answer scripts. Additionally, in case students are unable to reach these officials, the university has also issued a centralised email ID to help them out.”

The official added that the OBE is “purely optional”.

“It’s an opportunity for students to complete their course at the earliest. Students who can’t take the exams now will get an opportunity later to appear in the usual pen-and-paper exam.”

Several colleges in the university also said they expect some students to make use of their information and communications technology (ICT) facilities during the exams. Pratyush Vatsala, principal, Lakshmibai College, said, “Some staff members will be in college from tomorrow to help students via email or over calls. We have also set up an OBE control room to assist students. We have received some requests from students for the college’s ICT facility to upload their question papers.”

The University had asked the college principals to get applications from students who need ICT infrastructure for the exams. The students can inform the colleges beforehand and visit the campus to use their facilities.

Some students, however, said they will still be left out.

Deepak Gupta, 23, a visually impaired student pursuing and MA in English from St Stephen’s College said he could not arrange for a scribe. “I am stuck at home [in Bihar’s Rohtas district] due to the lockdown. The University administration had said they can only arrange scribes for students in Delhi. I could not find anyone to help me write an exam here. I have already cleared the PhD entrance test for IIT Delhi. I am scared of losing this opportunity due to the delay in getting my masters degree,” he said.

DU faculty members too expressed apprehensions about the process.

Pankaj Garg, an associate professor at Rajdhani College, said, “Students have faced a lot of problems in downloading question papers and uploading the answer scripts during the mock tests. Even though the university said it will conduct another round of exams for students who will not be able to attend now, their results will get delayed, which might affect many opportunities for them.”

DU teachers association (DUTA) member Abha Dev Habib said, “Not even half of the students could register online during the mock tests and the university is still going ahead and conducting the exams. We just hope our students do not get demoralised if they aren’t able to write the exams now.”