West Bengal Nods Head Over Centre's Directive on Holding University Examinations

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West Bengal Higher Education Department on Thursday objected to the advisory of the central government, asking universities and other academic institutions to compulsorily conduct final-year examinations by September-end.

In a letter to the HRD ministry, Manish Jain, chief secretary of the Department of Higher Education and School Education, urged that the matter be re-examined in the interest of students' physical and mental well-being in the present situation of COVID-19.

Jain said that by not making the revised MHRD guidelines mandatory the state should be allowed to implement its own decision.

'Mentioning statements such as final examinations should be conducted compulsorily in accordance with UGC's revised guidelines, the HRD ministry vacates its letter of July 06, 2020 only against the spirit of the federal structure enshrined in the Constitution, since education is included in the list at the same time, and the state has never been consulted by UGC, despite the request for a consultation with respect to framing such guidelines.

End-Semester Exams

With the current trend of rising in COVID-19 cases since April, "we are not sure whether the situation will be conducive for the conduct of offline examinations by September in a vast country like India," it said.

Given that a vast section of students are still deprived of net connectivity as well, holding online exams will not be appropriate, Jain said. In view of the "unforeseen, uncertain and challenging situation when educational institutions are used as quarantine centers" and due to restrictions on rail movement and Amphan cyclone damage,

West Bengal issued a university advisory, giving due weight to internal evaluation and candidate performance in the previous semester in order to ensure transparency, the letter said.

"The advisory was overwhelmingly appreciated by the students, their parents and other stakeholders," Jain added.

According to a revised guideline issued by the University Grants Commission ( UGC), students who are unable to appear in September 's final-year exams will have another chance, and universities will conduct special examinations as and when possible.