A day after higher education regulator University Grants Commission (UGC) listed its recommendations to mitigate the academic crisis due to the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown, three central universities in the capital—Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), and Jamia Millia Islamia—began deliberations on how to implement them in their institutions.
While Jamia and JNU have decided upon a tentative arrangement for conducting their semester or annual examinations, Delhi University (DU)—which has over 90 colleges affiliated to it—is yet to come out with a plan. There are high chances on the plan to be out next week. The UGC, while providing a basic framework, has allowed universities to modify and adapt the recommendations as per their need.
Jamia’s media coordinator Ahmad Azeem said, “The university has decided to hold the examination of our final-year students as per UGC recommendation during July 1-15. The exams will be conducted at the varsity while following proper social distancing measures. However, if the situation demands, we are also ready to hold the exams online. For the intermediate students, who will spend another year or semester at the varsity, we will mark them on multiple internal assessments.” HT had earlier reported how the varsity was asking its students to submit five 20-mark online assessments and pick the best of three among them for their final score.
JNU vice-chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar on Thursday said that the administration has forwarded the UGC guidelines to all its schools and centres. “The schools and centres have decided to follow a suitable model relevant to their specific needs so that students can complete their academic requirements without delay,” he said.
Last week, JNU had already allowed all its schools and special centres to hold midterm and semester examination via the mode of their choice. Of 13 schools, five decided to go for the online mode. The rest will hold offline exams after the lockdown. The School of Environment Studies started conducting its midterm exams online this week.
Members of the DU’s task force—constituted to look into the academic situation during the pandemic—held a meeting on Thursday to discuss the implementation of UGC recommendations. “The UGC recommendations are well thought out, keeping the current scenario in mind wherein nothing is certain. We have already extended our teaching session till May 15 and will work on the new academic calendar as well. So far, the focus is on exams and admissions, and we will make a decision soon after fulfilling necessary statutory requirements,” Payal Mago, joint dean of colleges and a member of the task force, said.
Several principals of DU colleges have also expressed concern about conducting the academic sessions since the upcoming ones will also see an increase in the number of seats for the 10% reservation for candidates belonging to Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category. The university had planned to increase its intake by 25% to facilitate the quota in two phases: 10% during the 2019-20 academic session and 15% for the 2020-21 session.
Manoj Khanna, principal of Ramjas College, said, “The entire trajectory of the academic session needs to be redefined. Since we have to conduct classes keeping social distancing measures in mind, we have to devise ways to do so. The increase in seats after the implementation of the second phase of the EWS quota will make things more difficult. In my opinion, we could have an option for both online and offline classes with relaxation in attendance. Those willing to come to college, while following necessary precautions, should be allowed to do so. Mechanisms for those who cannot do so should be made. For instance, the university could come up with its own platform to conduct online classes.”
Admissions
The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has led to the Class 12 board exams conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) being postponed. A delay in the board exams means an immediate impact on the admission process of several universities.
Anju Shrivastava, principal of Hindu college, said, “While we are hoping that the UGC put together a timeline considering the CBSE exams, the reality will only unfold in the days to come. If board exams don’t happen in the stipulated time, admissions can be pushed further. We are waiting for the university’s directions on the matter.”
An official from the DU’s admission branch said the university had been contemplating this issue. “There are many factors to consider. For instance, with CBSE announcing that it won’t hold exams for languages, the marking is likely to be based on internal assessment, which is done by schools. A mechanism has to be put in place to ensure uniformity across the country. We are working on a tentative schedule and may open the admission portal for entrance-based courses towards mid-May. ”
A senior university official from Jamia said the varsity already has a mechanism in place to allow provisional admission for students who do not get have their mark sheets at the time of admission. “The same is likely to be implemented for this period since our admissions are entrance-test based. Students can submit their mark sheets when they get them,” the official said.
The JNU VC said the varsity will follow the UGC calendar for the admission process. The National Testing Agency, which conducts the JNU Entrance Exam (JNUEE), on Thursday extended the date of registration till May 15. Last year, the JNU Entrance Exam was held between May 27 and May 30, and the results were declared in the second week of June. “This year we are expected to hold the entrance exam in July so that the admission process can be completed by August as recommended by the UGC,” a JNU official said.
Students’ Union Elections
The students’ union election is an integral part of both JNU and DU. The elections are conducted in September every year. Last year, while JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) elections were held on September 7, Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) polls were held on September 13. However, uncertainty looms over the students’ body elections this year due to the change in the academic calendar.
DS Rawat, former Delhi University chief election officer, said that as per the Lyngdoh Committee Guidelines, the students’ union election shall be conducted six to eight weeks after the commencement of the academic session. “Normally the academic session begins in July and we conduct elections in September. But now when the academic session is set to begin in August for second and third-year students and in September for first-year students, the elections cannot be held before November,” he said.
Officials in the JNU also cited the Lyngdoh Committee Recommendations and said that any decision about the students’ union election will be taken after consulting with the MHRD and the UGC. “The elections lead to huge gatherings. We do not know what the situation will be post-lockdown. Anything related to elections will only be decided after the beginning of the academic session,” a senior official said.
