JOIN USCandidates who sat for the recent National Eligibility Test (NET) had more on their minds than their performance in the test. They had to conform to dress regulations mandated by the University Grants Commission, the body which conducts the nation-wide examination to assess eligibility of candidates for recruitment to the posts of assistant professors in colleges and universities. Under the regulations, candidates were forbidden from wearing watches and metal rings or carrying electronic devices, books, mobile phones and pieces of paper to the test venue. Concerns over students using mobile phones and other electronic gadgets to secure outside help in answering questions have been rising in recent years. It is to prevent candidates from seeking such help or copying from papers they carry into the examination hall that the UGC issued the guidelines. As if these dress guidelines aren’t bad enough, examiners and security personnel posted at the examination centres seem to have gone overboard on the day of the test. At several centres in Bengaluru, women candidates were told to remove even their mangalsutras and other jewellery before entering the exam hall.
The NET is a highly competitive exam. Test-takers work hard to prepare for it and are anxious to put in their best performance. When they are harassed just before they enter the exam hall, it impacts their performance negatively. The UGC’s restrictions on what students can bring or wear in the examination hall may be well-intentioned, but clearly it is poorly thought through and implemented. And it seems to have learnt no lessons from the past. It may be recalled that in May this year, candidates taking the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET), which is conducted by the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE), were similarly harassed. Not only were the CBSE dress guidelines ridiculous — applicants were instructed to wear short-sleeved and light-coloured shirts or kurtas only — but also, applicants were hassled and humiliated before they stepped into the exam hall. In some centres, girls were made to remove their inner wear. The NEET dress code generated public outrage and was widely reported in the media. Still, the UGC decided to go ahead with its own dress code for the NET.
Cheating at examinations must not be allowed. But authorities need to turn to technology to monitor candidates. Besides, what are invigilators doing? Isn’t monitoring for cheating their responsibility? Increasing the number of invigilators and briefing them on the novel methods that candidates use to cheat are measures that are likely to be more useful than atrocious dress codes and unacceptable behaviour by exam hall officials. Bodies such as the UGC and CBSE must stop these practices.