Supreme Court: Universities can't promote students without holding final exams before 30 September
The Supreme Court in India decided that despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic universities can't promote their students without having them undergoing final exams before 30 September.
The Indian Supreme Court decided on Friday that states and universities can't promote their students before holding final year exams by 30 September, in compliance with the decision of the University Grants Commission (UGC).
A committee headed by judge Ashok Bhushan supported the decision of UGC of holding the exams, calling on states that since they can't hold their exams before the end of September due to the pandemic situation to approach UGC in order to schedule new dates for holding the exams.
The committee said that exams have to be held as per guidelines set by the UGC and for any state requiring exceptions, they need to ask UGC for permission, "States can postpone final year exams under Disaster Management Act but fresh dates have to be fixed in consultation with UGC," it said.
The UGC said that the guidelines set for conducting the exams back on 6 July are based on recommendations of experts and have been made after comprehensive consultations, and it is inappropriate to claim that it will not be possible to conduct the final examinations in the presence of these guidelines.
UGC has also opposed decision made by some states like Delhi and Maharashtra to cancel the final exams, affirming that such moves would negatively affect the standards of higher education and will be considered a violation of legislative field of coordinating, and determining the standards of higher education that is exclusively reserved for Parliament under Schedule VII of the Constitution.