Final-year exams for undergraduate courses in Maharashtra between July 1 and 30: Minister

After weeks of confusion, higher and technical education minister Uday Samant on Friday clarified that the state will hold exams of all final-year undergraduate

After weeks of confusion, higher and technical education minister Uday Samant on Friday clarified that the state will hold exams of all final-year undergraduate (UG) courses between July 1 and 30, while all students in other years of their UG courses will be promoted to the next academic year.

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“All the university students, except those in the final year of their graduation course, will be promoted to the next academic year by their respective universities. Final-year students, as of this date, will be appearing for their exams between July 1 and 30,” said Samant during a Facebook Live session held in the afternoon, after several students posed across the state posed the question.

The development has come less than a week after a University Grants Commission (UGC)-appointed committee released a report recommending similar directives to universities across the country.

During his interaction, Samant said the final-year exam dates will be clarified in the coming days and but if the lockdown, owing to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak, is extended beyond June 30, the state will again hold a meeting between June 20 and 25 to confirm their next decision on the status of final-year exams.

For the first and second-year students, the state has decided to adopt UGC’s recommendation and promote students based on a 50-50% gradation formula, in which 50% will be allocated for a student’s performance in internals and other projects in the current semester and 50% for the student’s performance in the previous semester.

“Students who have allowed-to-keep-term (ATKT) remarks for any subject from the previous semester will be promoted for the time being, but will have 120 days once the new academic year starts to appear for an exam and clear the subject,” added Samant.

“We may have to cut short the exam time from 3 hours to 2 hours, or we moght also decide to take a 50 mark theory exam instead of 80 or 100 marks, but such decisions will be left to the university. We also suggest each of the university decide on the summer vacation dates and inform students accordingly,” said Samant, and added that any practical exams, including VIVAs should be taken online in order to maintain social distancing rules.

All university and professional course examinations has been held back due to the ongoing lockdown situation but all state governments were asked to clarify their stand recently by the Union human resource development (HRD) ministry, based on UGC recommendations.

Samant also pointed out at the UGC’s minimum compulsory attendance rule for students and said that the 45 days of lockdown should be considered by institutes as time spent in college by all students and added to the current attendance record of students. The education minister has also requested universities to set up help desks and call centres in their respective districts to ensure that all queries of students and parents are answered and to also set up online counselling helplines for the benefit of students and parents affected by the lockdown.

Calming nerves of Class 12 students who are waiting to hear the news on the entrance examination dates for professional courses, which is to be conducted by state common entrance test (CET) cell, Samant clarified that the CET officials along with officials from the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) are currently working on the schedule, which will be shared within the next eight days.

What did Uday Samant say during the interaction