Staff Reporter
RONO HILLS, Jul 4: Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) here has written to the education secretary regarding the promotion and conduct of university examinations at RGU and affiliated colleges in the state on 3 July, and requested the secretary to “consider the monitoring and getting things done through the offices of the concerned college principals or deans.”
Accordingly, awarding of the marks for the intermediate semesters shall be a composite of 25 percent marks on the basis of internal assessments, 25 percent from an additional term-end assignment, and the remaining 50 percent marks shall be awarded on the basis of the performance in the immediate previous semester only.
The university guidelines of promoting students of the intermediate semester to the next semester shall be applicable to all the courses run by the university departments and affiliated colleges imparting non-professional degrees only.
This guideline is only applicable for the current intermediate semester, and shall be renewed or amended by the competent authorities of the university if the pandemic and lockdown continue, the RGU said.
The students shall also be awarded 100 percent attendance during the lockdown period by excluding the holidays and summer vacation.
RGU to go ahead with term-end exams
Notably, the demand of the RGU Students’ Union (RGUSU) to promote the terminal semester or final-year students
alongside the students of intermediate semesters/year has been denied as the university has decided to go ahead with the examinations for all students of terminal semesters/years based on the recommendation, advisory and guidelines of the UGC in the month of August/September.
The university said that the duration for each examination shall be three hours as usual, without compromising the quality of the examinations in the conventional mode (physical appearance/writing), maintaining the norms of social distancing.
All enrolled students shall be given 100 percent attendance against the lockdown period from 25 March to 18 May, 2020.
“In this regard, a tentative timetable for final examinations, keeping in view the best interest of all the stakeholders, shall be prepared under the authorization of the vice chancellor, in consultation with the academic council members,” the RGU said in its letter.
Nonetheless, the RGUSU has strongly opposed the move and said that it would not accept the decision unless the university holds at least two months’ worth of interactive classes when the situation normalizes, or takes the assurance for each student’s health and life before the conduct of examinations.
The union also asked the university to first assess the success of the online classes before making students sit for exams based on them, and said that examinations without interactive classes meant academic loss for them.
The RGUSU said it would inform about its further course of action soon.
Exams of professional course students as per recognizing bodies
The courses which are under statutory regulatory authorities (SRA) shall follow the guidelines for the promotion of the students framed by those authorities (MCI for medical courses, NCI for nursing, HCI for homeopathy, Bar Council of India for law, NCET for BEd, AICTE for engineering courses, etc).
The MBBS exams will be held in September, as per the MCI, BSc (nursing) supplementary and final exams in August/September, as per the INC, and BHMS exams in December, as per the CCH calendars.
The practical examinations for BHMS final year shall be conducted within July.
In situations where previous semester or previous year marks are not available, particularly in the first year of annual pattern of examinations, 100 percent evaluation shall be done on the basis of internal assessments.
Wherever need be, the academic calendar and guidelines of respective regulatory bodies, such as the MCI, the INC, the CCH, the AICTE and the NCTE shall be invoked.
In its notification, the RGU also decided that both the intermediate semester/year and term end semester/year students shall have to fill up examination forms online compulsorily after due authentication by the HoDs, directors or course coordinators for students of RGU and principals and dean for the students in colleges.
However, the university did not specify whether intermediate semester students would have to pay the examination fee or not.
Admission to UG, PG, MPhil and PhD courses
Informing that the online admission process or the conduct of entrance tests is not possible considering the remoteness and poor connectivity of the region, the RGU authority has decided that new admission to all courses shall be on the basis of merit in the coming academic session, 2020-21.
For MPhil/PhD admissions, the university will conduct entrance test mandatorily.
For courses such as physical education, music & fine arts, etc, which require compulsory practical tests for admission, the same shall be conducted as usual.
All courses in which national regulatory/supervisory bodies have their guidelines or national level test shall be governed by the same.
In addition to these updates, the RGU informed the education secretary that the university has decided to start choice-based credit system in undergraduate courses in both RGU and its affiliated colleges.
A nine-member committee constituted to see the feasibility has recommended it with a few suggestions, such as conducting a sensitization workshop on it at the earliest.
