Now, 75% attendance rule relaxed for II PU exams in Karnataka

Considering the loss of academic days due to Covid-19, the department of pre-university education has decided to relax the 75% mandatory attendance rule for students appearing for II PU examinations this year.

This follows a similar decision by the Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board, relaxing the mandatory 75% attendance rule to appear for SSLC exams.

Sources in the department of PUE told DH, “Several students were unable to attend online classes due to network and other issues. On the other hand, some of the students are not attending offline classes due to Covid fear. When this is the situation, we cannot insist on 75% attendance.”

An official notification about the same is expected in a day or two.

Data from the department shows that during the 2020 exams, over 4,000 students were not allowed to appear for the exams due to shortage of attendance.

What the Act says?

Rule 21 of the Karnataka Education Act, 2006, specifies mandatory attendance of 75% to get eligibility to appear for final examinations at all levels. This rule applies for I PU, undergraduate, postgraduate and professional courses too.

If any student falls short of attendance, he/she will not be allowed to sit for the final examinations, supplementary examinations. They need to enrol/get admission as fresh candidates, ensure 75% attendance and then appear for final exams.

Some universities, including Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), have brought in relaxations for compulsory attendance. As per the instructions given by VTU to affiliated colleges, if the students fall short of attendance by 10%, the same should be added by the colleges while sending data to the university.