Journalism of Courage
The Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) has announced a waiver in its examination fee for preparatory courses for students from drought-hit areas.
The preparatory courses are the mandatory qualifying criteria for individuals who want to pursue degree-level courses offered by the open university despite not having completed Class XII.
YCMOU has also extended till April 15 the last date for submitting application forms for the preparatory courses.
Our study centres across Maharashtra have been informed about the fee-waiver decision for preparatory courses. The fee is around Rs 600 per student. The candidates from government-declared drought-affected areas would be eligible for the benefit, said YCMOU spokesperson Jayawant Khadtale.
He said while nearly 32,000 candidates across the state had registered for preparatory courses till now,the number was expected to go up to 50,000.
By enrolling over 4.2 lakh students for its different programmes during the academic year 2011-12,YCMOU,headquartered at Nashik,registered more than 20 per cent increase in the student registration over the preceding year.
The open university offers more than 206 academic programmes at different levels with the help of 11 regional centres,16 district centres and over 4,000 study centres.
Santosh Nirmal,an aspirant for YCMOU course from drought-affected Beed district in Marathwada region,expressed satisfaction over the decision to waive the fee for preparatory examinations and extend the last date for submission of applications.
