The University Grants Commission (UGC), India’s higher education regulator, On Monday, told the Apex Court that degrees cannot be awarded to students without final year exams and that only it is engaged to accept an approach whether the exams can occur or ought to be dropped.
In response to the stance of the Delhi & Maharashtra Govts, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Supreme Court that they have canceled final year/ terminal semester examinations because of COVID -19.
Solicitor General told a 3-Judge bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan that Students cannot get degrees without exams How can states cancel exams when UGC is engaged to confer degrees? As per the law, such degrees will not be recognized by UGC.
Justices R Subhash Reddy & MR Shah was hearing a cluster of petitions by final year students and associations testing the July 6 rules issue by UGC on holding final year exams by September 30.
The applicants have requested that the apex court consider rejecting the online or offline exams and rather direct the UGC to announce results by July 31 July on the basis of past performance or internal evaluation of the students.
Mahesh Verma, vice-chancellor of Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University said it’s not just about a few students. The decision will affect a huge number of students. Institution run by Delhi government has promoted students based on their performance in the internal tests & last semester.
Delhi and Maharashtra governments summoned powers under the Disaster Management Act of 2005 to scrap the tests. The law of the Disaster Management Act expected to guarantee viable administration of catastrophes and it enables state and center governments to take measures to alleviate disaster circumstances. Both are among the most exceedingly awful influenced by the pandemic.
Supreme Court advocate Haris Beeran said the powers under it are being widely seen when we saw that the central government and the states have brought the lockdown to a standstill and to freely transfer various fundamental rights of the citizens freely Has given the right to transfer. It is also appropriate to postpone examinations if fundamental rights can be curbed in compliance with that law. Therefore, in his opinion, the power of the states under the Disaster Management Act will unleash the powers of the UGC.
Maharashtra cancels their exams on 19 June and Delhi on 11 July. The Maharashtra government told the apex court that it had decided to cancel the final year examinations constituted under the Disaster Management Act, the State Disaster Management Authority, recommending it against the backdrop of the Covid-19 epidemic. It was submitted by Maharashtra that most of the university chancellors of the state were against giving final year examination due to the rapid increase in coronavirus cases in the state.
In India, Maharashtra has the highest coronavirus cases, reporting over 17,757 deaths & 500,000 cases to date. The Delhi government likewise received a comparable position, calling attention to that not all students had the option to go to online classes, referring to an advanced gap that made online teaching out of reach to special students.
In this tough time, regular classes are not possible said the affidavit by the Delhi government. It is difficult for students to arrange online study material and the libraries of colleges were also closed. Although gaining access through online mode under such awkward circumstances, students did not get the necessary preparation to attempt a full exam.
However, there are 4,111 deaths and over 145,000 cases in Delhi till Sunday. All the colleges and0 schools have been closed since later Walk by virtue of Covid-19 and the lockdown forced to battle it. On the whole, India forced a 68-day lockdown between Walk 24 and May 31. From that point forward, a few exercises have been permitted, albeit instructive organizations have not been permitted to reopen.
Some more states including Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Haryana have also canceled final year University exams. Some states like Karnataka and Tamil Nadu had canceled first and second-year exams but not final year exams.
The bench queried him, asking Mehta to respond in an affidavit that will the Disaster Management Act override the UGC directive? The issue was deferred to empower the UGC to record its reaction and will be heard again on August 14.
Earlier, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, the education minister said the choice on tests was taken to guarantee that the shadow of COVID didn’t fall on the degrees of understudies and their vocations were not influenced. The priest has posed an inquiry about the opening of schools, to which he answered that a choice would be taken remembering the security of staff and students.
The UGC filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court on July 30 defending its July 6 directive that examinations be held by September-end. stating that the academic future of students will be irreparably damaged if the examinations are not held.
UGC HAS CLARIFIED, FINAL YEAR EXAMINATIONS CAN BE ONLINE/OFFLINE BUT MUST BE TIME BOUND
Initially, the final year exams were announced to be held in July as per the UGC guidelines issued on April 29, suggestions of an expert committee headed by RC Kuhad, Chairperson of Central University of Haryana.
UGC, in June, keeping in mind the evolving COVID-19 situation, mentioned the expert council to revise to the rules. In view of the expert committee’s suggestions, new rules were then given on July 6, coordinating that assessments be held before the finish of Sept.
The rules state that colleges could direct the assessments in the online mode or offline mode by guaranteeing adherence to social distancing standards.
UGC: NOT HOLDING FINAL YEAR EXAMS WILL DAMAGE FUTURE OF STUDENTS
One of the petitioners was a Coronavirus positive student, he raises a demand regarding exams cancelation. Yuva Sena, Shiv Sena’s youth wing was also a petitioner.
UGC mentioned that final year exams are significant in light of the fact that the learning procedure of unique cooperation where the best way to make sense of what the understudies know is to look for proof of their insight. Scholastic assessment of definite year understudies is, in this manner, a significant achievement in any instruction framework.
The principal of Delhi University’s Ramjas College, Manoj Khanna, agreed that it would be exceptionally hard to evaluate students based on inward checks. It can’t be an appropriate type of appraisal and it tends to be a foul play to students who get ready well for the last tests of the year. He said not taking tests won’t be reasonable.
HEARING POSTPONED TO AUGUST 14 | PETITIONERS QUESTIONS CONSTITUTIONALITY OF UGC GUIDELINES
