Promote UG, PG students to final year without exams, Maharashtra urges UGC

The Maharashtra minister requested the UGC to consider the option to promote students without conducting exams of last year for undergraduates and postgraduates.

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Mumbai: Maharashtra Minister of Higher and Technical Education Uday Samant in a letter to the University Grants Commission (UGC) said that the state has decided to promote all college students except those in their final year.

Samant requested the UGC to consider the option to promote students without conducting exams of last year for undergraduates and postgraduates. 

In the letter to UGC, Samant said, "The state government took the decision to promote students of diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate to next year except for students of final year. The grading of the students will be done as per UGC and State Level Committee’s guidelines." 

Maharashtra government, meanwhile, appointed a state-level committee to recommend regarding the conduct of examinations and the academic calendar based on UGC guidelines. The committee submitted its report on May 6.

Samant said the government took the decision in view of COVID-19 pandemic and in order to maintain social distancing, safety and health of all students.

With this, all diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate (excluding medical, agriculture and animal husbandry universities) students, except for those who are in their final year, will be promoted to next year. The grading of these students shall be done as per UGC and state-level committee's guidelines. 

"Considering the pandemic situation in the stat, conducting exams of approximately 8-10 lakh students by maintaining all safety protocols seems very challenging and may endanger the safety and health of the students. I, hereby request your good self to kindly consider the option of promoting students without conducting exams of last year for UG/PG and grade them as per UGC guidelines," the Maharashtra minister said.