Amidst protests in view of the persistent Covid-19 threat, the universities in Kerala went ahead with the conduct of examinations of various courses at various colleges.
While the University of Kerala commenced the examinations of students of graduate courses on Monday, it will begin the post-graduate examinations on Tuesday.
Other examinations that began on Monday are those of sixth semester students of Mahatma Gandhi University, exams of final-year graduation students of the University of Calicut, and that of LLB and LLM students of University of Kannur.
The examinations of final-year distance education graduate students of Kannur University are slated to commence from Tuesday, and that of sixth semester (regular) graduate students on June 30.
The graduate and post-graduate final semester students of the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, will have their examinations from Tuesday.
The Kerala University of Health Sciences began the examinations on June 21.
Students concerns
Students, meanwhile, complained that they lacked adequate transportation facilities to attend the university examination centres. The complaints were mostly raised by students residing in areas under strict COVID-19 regulations.
Students had earlier demanded the government to conduct the examinations online in view of the pandemic. Shashi Tharoor, MP, and Mathew Kuzhalnadan, MLA, and other people’s representatives, too, had submitted separate memoranda, raising the same demand.
Turning down the demand, the universities went ahead with the conduct of examinations. The Department of Higher Education said the exams would be conducted under strict COVID-19 protocol.
Tharoor said he held talks on the matter with the Governor as a final effort in this regard. The Governor promised to take up the issue with the Office of the Chief Minister, the MP said.
Pro-vice-chancellor of MG University Dr C T Aravind Kumar said students who cannot sit for exams due to COVID-19 would get a separate chance on producing medical certificates.