Mumbai: The politicisation of final year examinations of higher and technical education courses is highly condemnable, as it has led to fear and uncertainty among students, Students Islamic Organisation of India (SIO) said on Friday.

In a letter to Maharashtra governor and chancellor of all the state universities Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and the state government, SIO has appealed that the authorities need to develop a consensus around the issue of university examinations, instead of indulging in partisanship. The student organisation has also suggested a few measures to ensure health, safety and justice for all the students.

In its letter, SIO has asserted that at a time of a global health crisis, the safety and health of students should be of utmost priority and any decision regarding examination should be taken accordingly.

The organisation has argued that the degree certificate is awarded to a student on the basis of her performance in all the semesters and not just the final semester. Hence, students of all the years should be treated uniformly and therefore singling out only final year students to appear for exams would be unfair to them.

SIO has proposed that if the situation of Covid-19 outbreak gets under control and educational institutions are in a position to reopen in July then none of the examinations (including intermediate years) should be cancelled and the results should be declared within 30 days of the tests. But if the health crisis persists any longer, all the examinations irrespective of course and year should be canceled and grading should be done on the basis of aggregate score.

The letter also said that the ongoing lockdown has highlighted the limitations and shortcomings of our educational infrastructure. It urged the government to upgrade the educational infrastructure so that we are better equipped to face such a crisis in future.

“While the state government has decided to cancel all the examinations, there’s still uncertainty over the exams of final year students. The politicisation of this issue is highly condemnable, as it has created more panic and confusion among students. There is a need to develop consensus instead of partisanship,” said Salman Ahmed, president SIO South Maharashtra.

Department of Media

SIO South Maharashtra