Govt tells technical varsities to hold final yr exams in July

Lucknow: Amid demand for cancellation of examinations, the Uttar Pradesh government on Monday issued directives to technical universities to hold online examinations from July 15-22 for final semester students and from July 23-31 for remaining students.
The examinations will be objective type and students can take the test from their homes. There are nearly 5 lakh students enrolled in over 750 technical institutions and 1,372 polytechnics across UP.
The decision came after the recommendations by a five-member committee set up to work out modalities for conducting examinations during Covid-19 pandemic.
A government order said a software, purchased through GeM portal, would be used to conduct the examinations.
The software will work on all devices and processors, including smartphone, tablets, desktops and laptops with minimum connectivity.
Reviewing preparations, secretary, technical education, Alok Kumar said, “We will make sure that the syllabus gets finished within next five weeks. If needed, we will ensure classes are held on weekends and in evenings.”
As per the government directives, three technical universities – APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (Lucknow), Madan Mohan Malaviya University of Technology (Gorakhpur), Harcourt Butler Technical University (Kanpur), and the Board of Technical Education (BTE) which gives affiliation to polytechnics — will hold mock tests to acquaint students about the online examination pattern.
Soon after the government directives, AKTU announced a tentative examination schedule for final year students. Nearly 2.3 lakh students are enrolled in various courses in over 750 colleges affiliated to AKTU.
The examination for final semester engineering students is scheduled from July 24, while final year pharmacy students will take examinations from July 20.
“We will hold a computer-based test which will comprise of 50 questions that students will have to answer in 90 minutes,” said AKTU vice-chancellor Prof Vinay Pathak.
Officials at MMMUT, which has around 5,200 students, said they were ready with all options. “Students will be able to take the examination even with low connectivity. In case of loss of connectivity, their previous solved questions will be saved,” an official said.
Meanwhile, students complained of incomplete syllabus and poor connectivity in rural areas. Chandresh Maurya, a student, said: “When it is mandatory to run classes for 90 days according to BTE calendar, not even 20% syllabus is complete through online medium. How can I take the exam?”