WB-UGC clash: Mamata Banerjee writes to PM Modi, urges him to stop university exams

WB-UGC clash: Mamata Banerjee writes to PM Modi, urges him to stop university exams 

DNA 

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in her letter to the Prime Minister, asked him to reconsider immediately the "revised guidelines" 

12.07.2020 

In what adds a new dimension to the clash between the West Bengal government and the University Grants Commission (UGC), the state's Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking the latter to re-examine the matter involving UGC issuing fresh guidelines to the universities and colleges across the country for compulsorily conducting the final year examinations. 

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in her letter to the Prime Minister, asked him to reconsider immediately the "revised guidelines", issued by the UGC and the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), and restore the earlier advisory of the UGC. 

Banerjee informed the Prime Minister that the earlier UGC guidelines that were issued on April 29 had clearly stated that the guidelines are advisory and suggestive in nature. However, the new "revised" guidelines issued on July 6 had asked all universities and colleges in the country to "compulsorily complete" the end-of-term examinations. 

Banerjee mentioned that the West Bengal government had, "after extensive consultation with all Vice-Chancellors and stakeholders", issued an advisory on June 27 to all state-aided universities and colleges of the state. "Our advisory, issued in the interest of health, safety, and future of students, provides due weightage to the internal assessment and the performance of the candidate in the previous semesters in order to ensure transparency. Besides, our advisory has a provision for holding special exams after the situation gets normalised, for such students, who wish to appear in a formal examination instead of an alternative evaluation method." 

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee urged the Prime Minister to reconsider the matter, especially since colleges and universities in West Bengal have already taken steps as per the advisory issued by the Higher Education Department. 

"The students, their parents, and other stakeholders have overwhelmingly appreciated our advisory issued on 27th June. In fact, I am now receiving hundreds of e-mails, from the students and the teaching community raising their concern o holding examinations, as per the revised guidelines issued by UGC, compelling me to take up this matter with your good office," Banerjee wrote in her letter to Prime Minister Modi. 

Earlier this day, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to cancel the final year examinations of Delhi University and other central government universities in view of the COVID-19 situation in the country. 

"For the sake of our youth, I urge Hon’ble PM to personally intervene and cancel final year exams of DU and other central govt universities and save the future," Kejriwal tweeted. 

Kejriwal had also sent a letter to PM Modi requesting him to cancel all examinations for universities and colleges falling under the Centre. 

"I request the central government and the University Grants Commission to change their guidelines in the larger interest of the students and cancel their final-semester examinations," Kejriwal stated in the letter.