The Minister for Higher and Technical Education in Maharashtra, Uday Samant, has taken a decision to extend the duration of final exams for college and university students in offline mode. As per the new directive, students in colleges will receive an additional 15 minutes per hour during their offline exams. The decision was reached during a meeting with vice-chancellors from various universities in Maharashtra on April 13, 2022.
The minister explained that the background of this decision was the impact of the pandemic, as online teaching and examinations had reduced students’ writing practice. Consequently, there was a demand to increase the time allotted for offline exams. The decision to grant an extra 15 minutes per hour for offline exams was communicated by the state’s higher education minister through a tweet following the meeting with the vice-chancellors.
In a related development, the University of Mumbai issued a circular urging autonomous colleges to provide additional time for students to complete their papers. The circular, signed by Vinod Patil, the Director of the Board of Examination and Evaluation, was directed to the principals or heads of autonomous colleges. The recommendation was made in response to students’ requests for relief in the upcoming examination session. Given that students would be taking offline exams for the first time in two years, the circular suggested that colleges allow extra time for students to complete their papers and ensure convenient timings for travel between exams.