Tamil Nadu govt's move to cancel arrear exams face AICTE roadblock

Tamil Nadu government’s decision to cancel arrear exams for students, except those in the final semester, in engineering colleges has run into rough weather with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) taking strong objection to the move.

The AICTE has warned the Anna University, the premier engineering institute owned by the Tamil Nadu government, that it would revoke all permissions granted if it went ahead with the decision of promoting all students who have arrears without taking the exams.

The warning came in the form of an e-mail from AICTE Anil Sahasrabudhe to Anna University Vice-Chancellor M K Surappa in which the central agency has flagged senior concerns over the move to give all pass to students who have arrears. Experts have also toed the line, saying the students who are allowed to get pass marks without appearing for arrear exams will not be able to find jobs in the market.

In the letter, Sahasrabudhe is understood to have expressed his concern over final year degree students who had failed in various courses in the earlier semester have been passed without conducting examinations.

“It is not acceptable to award marks without conducting any examination and graduating students. Such students will not be recognized by the industry or any other university for higher education," he is understood to have told the V-C. Though Surappa confirmed receiving the letter, the government continues to be in a denial.

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami had last month announced the cancellation of arrear exams for students, except those in the final semester, in engineering and other colleges in the state due to the Covid-19 lockdown. Though students welcomed the move gleefully by even erecting banners and thanking Palaniswami through memes and posters, educationists took objection to the move saying it was short-sighted.

Over 2 lakh students will get pass marks without having to appear for exams in Tamil Nadu due to the government’s decision. Despite objection from the AICTE, the government defends its move saying it cannot conduct exams for everyone during a pandemic.

The government also told the Madras High Court on Tuesday that it had the authority to cancel exams using the Disaster Management Act. The court was hearing a petition filed by a few individuals, including former vice-chancellor of Anna University, E Balagurusamy.