On July 6^th, The University Grants Commission (UGC) released revised guidelines on examinations and academic calendar for the universities.

In the guidelines, UGC has indicated that the university examination may be completed by September in online, offline or blended modes. The revised guidelines have been created based on the recommendations suggested by the expert committee.

What will be the mode of Final Semester / Year Exams 2019-20?

UGC has asked the universities to complete the examinations by the end of September 2020. Exams can be done in offline, or online or blended (online + offline) mode. The exams will be conducted following the prescribed protocols/ guidelines related to COVID-19 pandemic.

What if a student fails to appear for the final year examination?

In case a student of final semester / year is unable to appear in the examination for whatsoever the reason(s) may be, he/she may appear in special examinations for such course(s)/ paper(s). University may conduct such examinations as and when feasible so that such students are not put to any inconvenience/ disadvantage. This is a special provision for the academic session 2019-20 as a one-time measure

Will there be exams for backlog papers?

Yes, the students of final semester / year having backlog should compulsorily be evaluated by conducting examinations in offline, online or blended (online + offline) mode as per feasibility and suitability.

What is the update about intermediate semester/ year examinations?

As per UGC, the guidelines regarding intermediate semester/ year examinations will remain unchanged as notified in the previous guidelines issued on 29th April, 2020.

Will UGC release separate guidelines for admissions and academic calendar?

The UGC mentioned that if need be, it will release details pertaining to the Admissions and Academic Calendar in the colleges and universities separately in place of those mentioned in the earlier guidelines.

The revised guidelines issued by the UGC mandating final examinations have received mixed response from universities, students, parents as well as teachers.

31 students from different universities across India approached the Supreme Court to challenge the UGC revised guidelines for final examination. The students urged that the exams should be canceled and the results of such students should be calculated on the basis of their internal assessment or past performance.

Another petition on the issue, filed in the Supreme Court by final year law student Yash Dubey sought cancellation of UGC mandated final year exams. Shiv Sena leader Aditya Thackeray has also moved the Supreme court on behalf of Yuva Sena against the mandated final year exams in the wake of rising COVID-19 cases.

In response, UGC has stated that its Guidelines dated 6 July, 2020 have been issued to protect the academic future of the students across the country which will be irreparably damaged if their final examinations are not held. It says that it had done so while keeping the health and safety of the students in mind. UGC mentioned that it’s Guidelines taken account of the evolving situation of COVID-19 by not only providing adequate time for the conduct of examinations but also by giving flexibility to the universities on mode of conduct of examination i.e. offline/online/blended.

However, some students, Universities as well as state governments have still not taken the decision positively. In view of the current difficulties that our country is facing, it is quite unrealistic to justify the reasoning of conduction of virtual examination by relying on examples of the premier institutions of the world. We need to understand that premier institutes are largely accommodating of student’s concern and health threats.

These are unprecedented times and every sector is taking decisions in favour of physical and mental health of their citizens. UGC on the other hand is failing to consider that most of the educational institutions/Universities/colleges have been converted into quarantine centre and the conduction of the examination, in this testing time, is a threat to the life and health of thousands of students.