Deferring of exams will hit higher edu standards, says UGC

Deferring of exams will hit higher edu standards, says UGC

Rosy.Sequeira@timesgroup.com

Mumbai: 25.07.2020

University Grants Commission (UGC) told Bombay high court a Maharashtra government decision to defer final year/terminal semester exams for graduate students without holding exams will affect standards of higher education in the country.

UGC replied to a PIL that challenged the state’s June 19 decision to confer degrees to over 10 lakh undergraduate and postgraduate students of traditional and professional courses by giving average marks based on past performance or to hold exams later.

UGC’s July 23 affidavit, by its education officer Dr Nikhil Kumar, said universities/ institutions were obligated to conduct terminal semester/ final year exams by September-end. It said the Maharashtra government decision was contrary to its July 6 revised guidelines. It was “a matter directly affecting standards of higher education in the country” and “will be an encroachment on legislative field of coordinating and determining standards of higher education which is exclusively reserved for Parliament”.

UGC said the state, by taking the decision under Disaster Management Act, could not override statutory provisions of another special act (UGC Act), making it nugatory. It said in view of the evolving situation of the pandemic, UGC revised guidelines provided adequate time till September-end to conduct exams by following protocols and guidelines and flexible modes of online, offline and a blend of both exams. It provided for conduct of special exams as and when feasible so that students are not inconvenienced or at a disadvantage. “UGC issued such guidelines to protect the academic future of students across the country, which will be irreparably damaged if final year/terminal semester exams are not held, keeping in mind their health and safety.”

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta will hear the PIL and pleas for and against exams on July 31.