COVID 19: IIT Kharagpur declares semester break for first-year students

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has declared an interim break for first-year undergraduate students, starting May 1 to May 16. The interim break has been given “because of the “increasing severity of the pandemic”, said Virendra Kumar Tiwari, director, IIT Kharagpur, in a Facebook post.

The decision, Tiwari said, has been taken after a large number of students expressed their inability to attend online classes. “They (the students) have indicated that their learning abilities are impacted due to the current scenario. They felt that an interim break in the semester may give some relief and provide them time to consolidate things until the medical situation in the country is stabilized.”

COVID-19: Semester break

The spring semester had started on March 30.

The decision to give a break was taken after a meeting with heads and deans on April 28, 2021. The teachers teaching the first-year students and the student representatives were also called for their opinion on April 29.

The institute has decided to suspend all classes or tests during this period. The spring semester for the first year will now end in the first week of July, 2021 instead of last week of June. IIT Delhi, too, conducted a survey among students to take stock of their situation and following that, relaxed its evaluation policy. It also allowed a week’s break at the beginning of May for a section of students.

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