UGC to release guidelines for University exams, academic calendar today

The University Grants Commission (UGC) will be releasing the guidelines for conducting the pending annual examinations and academic calendar for varsities across the country soon.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) is planning to release the guidelines for conducting the pending annual examinations and academic calendar for varsities across the country soon, sources said.

As per the report released by a media house, the official from the Commission has confirmed the development and said that the guidelines will be released either today or tomorrow.

The higher education regulator which is currently working on the plan to be adopted for the academic activities based on two expert committee reports submitted last week, the official said. 

On Monday, the commission had called a meeting to discuss issues of the academic calendar and the ways to conduct the examination as all the procedure for fresh admission has been put on hold due to coronavirus lockdown.

The Commission will look into the recommendations made by two panels set up to look into the issues of academic loss and online education in the wake of the lockdown in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, before issuing the guidelines for the academic institutions, the official said. 

As per the reports, one panel has recommended that the academic session can be from September instead of July. However, another panel has suggested that the universities can conduct online exams if they have the proper infrastructure and means or otherwise wait for the lockdown to be lifted to conduct pen-and-paper examinations.

One of the committees was formed to look into the ways to conduct the examination and alternate academic calendar, amid lockdown and was chaired by R C Kuhad, Vice-chancellor, Central University of Haryana. Another panel, which is headed by Nageshwar Rao, Vice-chancellor, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) was formed to suggest the measures to improve online education.

As per the reports, Commission has also deliberated on conducting a Common Entrance Test for all undergraduate courses sans the professional courses where entrance examinations have already been held. 

On March 16, Universities and schools across the country have been closed as one of the preventive measures to contain the outbreak. 

Read More:

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• COVID-19 Impact: UGC panels recommend academic sessions in September, online exams for universities