The Maharashtra government on Tuesday allowed colleges in the state to begin offline operations from February 1. The local administration, however, has been told to take a final decision based on Covid-19 pandemic condition in the area. Only those students who are fully vaccinated will be able to attend offline lectures in colleges. A government resolution (GR) issued late Tuesday said that while colleges can begin offline operations, online mode of learning has to continue for those who are not fully vaccinated. Exams, however, will have to be held online until February 15, following which it can be shifted to the offline mode. “As per earlier guidelines, colleges were to begin offline operations from February 15. In some courses, exams have already been scheduled in the online mode. Hence, those exams will have to be held online while exams after February 15 can be held as per a different plan," said an official from the higher and technical education department. As per the GR, for the exams after February 15, respective universities can take a call on whether they want to continue with online exams or shift to the offline mode. If any student is not able to appear for an online exam because of connectivity issues, the college will have to make arrangements for offline exams for the students. Universities will have to continue the helpline facility for students who are facing such or other problems regarding exams. The GR said that for students who have not been fully vaccinated, colleges will have to arrange for vaccination camps with help from the local administration. Universities will also have to take a decision on starting hostel facilities in phases as per guidelines from the local administration. Colleges in Maharashtra, which were closed due to the pandemic, had began offline operations only on October 20, 2021. Only those students who are fully vaccinated were allowed to attend and vaccination camps were started on college campuses. Colleges were asked to stop offline operations on January 8, 2022 by the state government till February 15 due to the increasing number of Covid-19 cases. Last week, the higher and technical education minister had submitted a proposal to begin offline operations of colleges, as Covid-19 cases are witnessing a drop in Maharashtra.
