HRD Minster, Ramesh Pokhriyal via Twitter directed University Grants Commission (UGC) to “revise” its examination guidelines 2020 and to “revisit” the academic calendar. 
“I have advised the UGC to revisit the guidelines issued earlier for intermediate and Terminal Semester examinations and academic calendar. The foundation of revisited guidelines shall be health and safety of students, teachers and staff,” Pokhriyal said on Twitter.
An UGC committee headed by Haryana University Vice-Chancellor, R.C. Kuhad has recommended to the government to scrape off exams for final year students in universities and institutions of higher education across India. The committee suggested that students should be evaluated on the basis of their internal assessment and the previous year performance rather.
Holding exams admist the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, would put lakhs of students at the risk of exposure and will increase the spread of the novel virus. Various students’ and teachers’ bodies have been protesting against the same.
Several states like Maharashtra, Haryana, Odisha have decided to promote the college students without holding examinations. Other states are requesting their governments to adopt these measures because of the pandemic.
The committee also said that if any student is dissatisfied with the results and wishes to improve it can do so by appearing for the exams later when the pandemic subsides.
UGC had earlier issues guidelines to cancel exams for students of intermediate years and promote them on the basis of internal assessment and their previous year performance.
