UGC to suggest academic calendar this week

It will review suggestions by panels

26/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

Panels set up by the University Grants Commission (UGC) have submitted recommendations on the revised academic calendar and suggestions for holding examinations at a time when the country is under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Commission’s members are likely to discuss the recommendations via video-conferencing on Monday and issue advisory guidelines for institutions of higher education by the middle of next week, according to UGC officials.

Meanwhile, Press Trust of India reported that a panel headed by Central University of Haryana Vice-Chancellor R.C. Kuhad had recommended that the new academic year begin in September, instead of July. Another recommendation was that universities conduct their year-end examinations online if they had the resources to do so. If not, they should wait until the lockdown is lifted to set a date for the hand-written examinations.

No semester exams yet

Most colleges and universities have not yet held their semester examinations to close the current academic year.

Apart from Dr. Kuhad’s panel, another panel headed by Indira Gandhi National Open University Vice- Chancellor Nageshwar Rao also submitted its report on improving online education in the midst of the lockdown.