RGUHS fines three students for cheating in exams via Bluetooth

Varsity toughens rules for malpractice; exam centre to face music

Three postgraduate medical students have been fined by the Malpractice Enquiry Committee of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Heath Sciences (RGUHS) for cheating in exams using high-tech gadgets.

Thirty students in all, from different streams of medical and allied courses, were presented before the committee which met on December 5 after they were caught indulging in various kinds of exam malpractice, sources said.

Sources in the RGUHS told Deccan Herald that in the recent months, many students were brought before the committee for exam malpractice. It may be noted that earlier this year, some of the students at the RGUHS were booked for tampering with answer scripts.

Exam irregularities continue to take place in spite of security measures put in place by the university. The three students in question were caught using Bluetooth devices and earpieces for copying.

The university has prescribed different penalties depending on the extent of the malpractice. Here is a look into some of them:

For mass copying, it is a fine of Rs 10,000, denying result of that particular subject, debarring for two exams, debarring the college and students involved and a fine Rs five lakh to be imposed on the college. Using customised T-shirt or Bluetooth devices and earpieces would attract a fine of Rs 20,000, debar for two exams and cancellation of results.

Impersonation will result in cancellation of admission, bar on taking admission in any institute and police complaint.

‘CCTVs not working’
Requesting anonymity, an RGUHS official said, “CCTV cameras installed in exam centres are not always functional. The blatant nature of these malpractices shows that it cannot be done without the connivance of the college management.

“I want to emphasise here that the university has definitely taken steps to check these incidents. But since the incidents continue to take place, maybe it’s time to look at a different strategy to address this issue.”

He also suggested penalising the invigilators so they would be extra cautious in the exam hall.

RGUHS Registrar (Evaluation) S Sacchidanand, however, had a different take on the issue. He said the number of incidents had reduced and the fact that all these students were being caught showed that the supervisory mechanisms were in place.

“During the exams, the centre is expected to give us a report every day on whether the CCTV cameras are functional. We also send flying squads,” he said.

On barring a college from being the exam centre, he said they could not always resort to such a step as that would affect the rest of the students who took the exam earnestly.