COVID-19 : Delhi University defers final year exams to June 1

NEW DELHI: Delhi University has decided to defer final year examinations amid rising COVID-19 cases in the city, officials said on Sunday. The final year and final semester exams were supposed to begin from May 15 but will now begin from June 1. They will be conducted online and held in open book format.

"We held a meeting on Saturday with all the heads of departments and deans. The meeting was chaired by the vice-chancellor. It was decided that the exams will be postponed to June 1," D S Rawat, Dean of Examinations, DU, said. Rawat said the decision on exams for intermediate semesters will be taken later.

He said the examination branch officials have been battling coronavirus and on Sunday morning two employees -- a section officer and a contractual staff -- succumbed to COVID-19. When asked if the exams could be deferred beyond June 1, he said it would not be possible.

"Many students have got job offers and in order to accept them, they need to have their final results. Students have also applied to foreign universities and require results within a time frame," he said.

Teachers have been given time till May 10 to submit question papers. Teachers and students have been demanding the deferment of exams and even cancellation. The Delhi University Teachers' Association had written to acting vice-chancellor Professor PC Joshi over the issue.

"The university must take a sensitive view of the situation that students and teachers find themselves in -- no one is in a position to write or conduct examinations at this moment. "Hence, we request you to consider cancelling examinations for all students and decide upon alternative means to evaluate students. Deadlines for submission of internal assessment must be extended," they had said in a letter dated April 30.

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