NEW DELHI: There have been updates regarding the opening of universities from the University Grants Commission (UGC), and the latest update is regarding the guidelines that must be followed given the Coronavirus pandemic. The guidelines have been released by Ramesh Pokhriyal and he added how that the process must be completed by the end of October while the remaining seats will be filled up by the end of November.
The guidelines clearly state that the admissions as far as merit based courses are concerned must be completed in due course of time. Meanwhile, the UGC has also clarified that in case the admissions are not conducted as per the policies, it can take to alternative modes for the admission process as well.
Among other things, UGC has also asked universities to opt for a 6-day week pattern in order to make up for the classes that have been lost due to the pandemic. It has already been issued that the classes are likely to begin from November 1, 2020, and in case there of an extension, it might be delayed to mid November.
Meanwhile, semester exams for odd semesters will be taking place from March 6 to 26 next year while the even semesters will take place from June 9 to 21, 2021. UGC has also directed universities to provide for special concessions in lieu of COVID-19, including those that include a refund of fees in case of cancellation/migration of students up until November 30.
As for other social distancing guidelines are concerned, they are the same as earlier. While the sessions were supposed to start from September, they were ultimately pushed for altering given the pandemic and the staggering numbers.
