UGC allows Bengal govt to hold university exams in October; results by Oct-end

The University Grants Commission has allowed the West Bengal government to hold final year exams in colleges and universities by October 18.

The apex education body has, however, requested the state government to ensure that results are published preferably by October-end so that admission to post graduate and PhD programs can start soon.

In its July 6 guideline, the UGC had made it mandatory to complete final examinations by the end of September 2020, which the Mamata Banerjee administration had opposed. The chief minister had even sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Later in August the Supreme Court upheld the UGC’s directive saying that students cannot be promoted without writing the final year examinations. The court however gave liberty to states to defer the exam beyond the September 30 deadline. Accordingly the Bengal government approached the UGC with new dates in October.

“Keeping in view the health and safety of the students and also in the larger interest of their academic progression, the UGC has decided to accede to your request. Accordingly, the final year / terminal semester examinations in colleges and universities in the state be completed by October 18,” stated a letter sent by Rajnish Jain, UGC secretary to Manish Jain, higher education secretary in West Bengal.

While most universities in the state have started preparing for the exams some such as Presidency University and engineering departments in Jadavpur University have already held the exams and published the results.

“We have been directed by the education department to publish the results preferably by October-end so that admission to PG courses and doctoral programs could start from he first week of November,” said a vice chancellor of a university.