88.2% final year students want last semester exams to be cancelled: MASU survey

Around 88.2 per cent out of 32,378 final year students of the state want the last semester exams to be cancelled, as per an online survey conducted by the Maharashtra Students Union (MASU), a student organisation. On May 26, Suhas Pednekar, Vice Chancellor (VC) of University of Mumbai (MU) approached MASU to understand what students think about final exams as the state government is yet to take a final decision on whether to conduct or cancel exams due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation.

Over 75,000 final year students from different cities, districts and rural areas of Maharashtra have signed an online petition to cancel the final year exams. Out of the 32,378 students who responded to the survey, 93.1 per cent fear that they will be at risks of getting infected by coronavirus while appearing for the exams. Out of this, 80.1 per cent students live in red zone areas where there is a high number of coronavirus cases.

Students claim that it is important to know the ground situation as exams will pose severe risks. Ritika Jain, a final year Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) student, said, "I do not want to take the risk of appearing for the exam and returning home to my family every day with the fear of being infected. I cannot put my parents at risks as there is a possibility that I may be a carrier of the virus." While, Mukesh Chauhan, a final year engineering student said, "The number of cases in Maharashtra, especially in Mumbai and Pune, are only increasing daily. It is quite risky to conduct exams amidst such conditions."

This survey has been submitted to the MU in order to provide a clear picture to the state of what students think. Siddharth Ingle, founder president of MASU, said, "We have submitted the findings of the survey to the VC of MU so that the VC can portray a clear picture of what students think to the state government. As per point 5 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines, the state has the power not to conduct exams if the conditions are not favourable."

If the state still wants to go ahead and conduct exams then they should clearly reveal their preparedness, precaution and safety measures, claimed Siddharth Tejale, head of Nashik division of MASU. Tejale said, "Despite such responses from students, if the state wants to conduct exams then the authorities should reveal specific guidelines, measures and steps of conducting exams. We want to know how the state plans to conduct exams while maintaining the safety and security of students."