End term examination are compulsory , to be held by September end : HRD Minister
The union ministry of human resource and development Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said the final year examinations in the colleges will be held in September.
The end-of-term semesters were postponed in the light of coronavirus outbreak in the country.
“The terminal semester will be conducted by the universities by the end of September, 2020 in offline (pen and paper) or online or blended (online + offline) mode,” the University Grants Commission (UGC) announced .
Final Semester Exams for students are mandatory
Amid rising concerns and protests over holding of the University / College Exams for Final Year Students, UGC released its guidelines for the final year semester exams yesterday.
According to the revised guidelines released in late evening the last day, the universities regulator, the Final Semester Exams for students have been mandatory and are to be held compulsorily for all the students who are currently in their terminal semester.
Pending examinations by end of September 2020: UGC
However, the timeline for holding the exam has been relaxed so far with Universities having the option to hold the pending examinations by end of September 2020.
Earlier Home Ministry also granted permission to the Higher Education Secretaries to guide varsities across the countries to hold the pending semester exams amid the on-going restrictions due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Exams has been suspended in various universities and higher education institutions.
The decision came after Union ministry of home affairs said it had sent a letter to the Union higher education Secretary permitting universities and institutions to conduct examinations.
From the last week of March all the educational institutions in the country has been shut down to stop the coronavirus spread in the country. Various examinations conducted by universities and higher education institutions have been suspended since then.
Even few days back CBSE , issued a guidelines mentioning the cancellation of 10 and 12 board exams .
Important to safeguard the principles of health, safety, fair and equal opportunity for students : HRD minister .
In the view of the emerging situation related to COVID-19 pandemic in India, it is important to safeguard the principles of health, safety, fair and equal opportunity for students said by the HRD minister .
The ‘UGC Revised Guidelines on Examinations and Academic Calender for the Universities in view of COVID-19 Pandemic was announced by the apex education regulator .
UGC revised guidelines for the final term examination
Earlier, there were reports that UGC may cancel the final year examinations amid COVID-19 outbreak in the country. Today’s announcement brought some clarity to students.
Special Exams for Students Who Miss Out Current Exams
The universities and higher education institutions will have to make the arrangements to hold special exams for students who miss out to appear in the current exams that will be held before September 2020 is mentioned in the UGC guidelines.
Universities will have the right to decide when and how these special exams will be held for pending students.
However, this provision will be applicable only for the current academic session of 2019-20, as a one-time measure.
Exams Mandatory for Backlog Students
In addition to the regular students, UGC has also directed all the students who currently have backlog in their final year to mandatorily apppear for the exams in online / offline or blended form, as per feasibility and suitability. .
Guidelines for Intermediate Semester Students Unchanged
In the latest guidelines issued by the Univerity Grants Commission, the provisional announced for intermediate semester students i.e. students who are not in their final semester has been kept unchanged.
HRD ministry earlier postponed the JEE and NEET 2020
The HRD ministry earlier postponed the JEE and NEET 2020 examinations amid COVID-19 outbreak.
“Keeping in mind the safety of students and to ensure quality education, we have decided to postpone JEE and NEET examinations,” Pokhriyal said.
The Home Ministry also said ,“The final Term Examinations are to be compulsorily conducted as per the UGC Guidelines on Examinations and Academic Calendar for the Universities and as per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) approved by the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
The UGC also held discussions on a revised academic calendar.
It plans to recommend that admissions be completed by November and the new academic session be started by December 1, according to a UGC member.
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