The Maharashtra Disaster Management Authority led by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has reaffirmed its earlier decision to not conduct the final year exam due to the Covid-19 pandemic situation, the State Minister of Higher and Technical Education Uday Samant said on Monday.

He said, “We will continue our previous decision which was taken in the Disaster Management Committee meeting. The government never said that it will not conduct final exams. Exams will be conducted but only after the COVID-19 situation improves.”

When asked about the UGC’s directives, Samant said, “Disaster Management Authority’s decision overrules University Act and state government’s Act, that’s why UGC should take stock of the COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra. UGC should discuss the matter with state and then take the decision.”

The MHRD had earlier announced that the final year examinations will be held in September. “The terminal semester will be conducted by the universities by the end of September, 2020 in offline (pen and paper) or online or blended (online + offline) mode,” the UGC stated.

UGC Secretary Rajneesh Jain had told Rajya Sabha TV that the regulator will ask state governments that had earlier cancelled exams to reconsider their decision. Maharashtra, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh had scrapped examinations. Reagrding the UGC revised guidelines, Jain said, “We have learned that some state governments have announced that examinations will not be held. If we (UGC) have issued guidelines, then all states and all universities will have to adopt it. The states which have made announcements, we will ask them to reconsider it.”

The UGC revised guidelines issued by the MHRD includes wearing masks, gloves as well as disinfection of test centre’s floors, walls, doors and gates.

Source: ANI