Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Days after a record number of Calcutta University (CU) students failed to clear Part I BA and BSc examinations under new rules that came into force last year, university authorities on Tuesday decided to go back to the old examination rules “for this academic session”, and publish fresh results of students who have failed.
The university’s decision is seen as a result of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s intervention — on February 2, she had asked state Education Minister Partha Chatterjee to look into the issue.
In results announced on January 25, the pass percentage for BA Part I (Honours and General) was 43, and 71 for BSc (both streams) — against 69 and 75 per cent, respectively, last year.
Students had blamed the change in rules for the poor results.
Following a much-awaited meeting of the CU Syndicate, the university’s highest decision-making authority, Vice Chancellor Sonali Chakraborty Banerjee said on Tuesday evening, “We have decided to restore the 2009 (examination) regulation for this academic session to offer a natural justice to students. We will notify the date from when the 2016 regulations will come into effect.
“As of now, the old regulation will be put in place. We will once again publish results of Part I BA and BSc Honours and General examinations based on the old regulation. The students will get new marksheets.”
The CU unit of West Bengal College and University Teachers’ Association (WBCUPA), aligned to the ruling Trinamool Congress, welcomed the decision. “We hope that students will utilise this opportunity properly to evaluate themselves and try to be serious in their studies. The university has softened its stand; now it is up to the students to return the favour,” said Sujoy Ghosh, secretary of WBCUPA’s CU unit.
Saurav Ghosh of All-India Democratic Students’ Organisation, the students’ wing of Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist), called this a result of the continued protests. “Students needed to raise this issue to get a patient hearing from university authorities,” he said.
Ghosh had earlier blamed CU authorities for failing to inform students and colleges on time about the change. “We are not denying students have failed, but there should be a level playing field. Students had appeared in the examination under the impression that they can take the supplementary examination later (and get promoted by clearing it).”
The revised rule, adopted at a CU Syndicate meeting in 2016 and implemented from 2017, says students with Honours should clear one of two General subjects besides clearing their Honours paper to get promotion. Earlier, Honours students were promoted even if they failed both General papers and cleared a supplementary exam.
For students without Honours subjects (General), students under the new rule were required to clear two of three subjects, instead of just one as per the earlier schedule.
As the protests grew louder, Chief Minister Banerjee on February 2 told Education Minister Chatterjee at a rally, “I don’t know whether it is right to say but a large number of students have failed this time. I will request you to look at the interest of those students. Please think about their future.”
Although he said that “we do not support agitation” and it is “responsibility of the students to clear examinations”, Chatterjee requested CU authorities to “think about this with sensitivity” and return to the old regulation.
Lagnajita Chakraborty, general secretary of CU students’ union, also affiliated to TMC, said, “We had full faith in the administration and university authorities…. We welcome it (the decision)…we never supported destructive protests…”
Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram
