Special exam chance for Kashmiri students in Punjab

Coming to the rescue of hundreds of Kashmiri students enrolled with government and private universities across the state, the Punjab Government will give a special chance to the students, who have gone back home and are unable to sit in the semester exams beginning in the coming days.

Education Minister Harjot Bains said the state allow special chance to the students to appear in their exams. He said the department was in touch with the authorities and the universities and instructions in this regard were being given. “We have been ensuring proper security at the educational institutions,” he added.

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, Kashmiri students have been facing the heat and many have gone back home, fearing backlash by right-wing activists. Though adequate police arrangements had been made at the collages where the students are enrolled, a number of students have preferred to travel back to their homes. Around 20,000 Kashmiri students are enrolled in colleges across the state.

Already, IK Gurjal Punjab Technical University, Kapurthala, has allowed the Kashmiri students to abstain from the end semester exams beginning April 28. While the exams in the IKGPTU, Jalandhar, are starting from April 28, the exams of Maharaja Ranjit Singh TU, Bathinda are starting from May 13.

“The university will re-conduct their exams at designated centres on a later date after their return to their respective colleges. The students who want to stay back and want to appear in the exams can do so. The DGP, Punjab Police, has been asked to provide adequate security,” said an order issued by Controller Examination, IK Gujral PTU.

The Punjab Unaided Colleges Association (PUCA) has urged Punjab Technical Universities to conduct exam in hybrid mode for Jammu and Kashmir students, particularly. Dr Anshu Kataria, president, PUCA, has urged the vice-chancellors of two technical universities to postpone the examinations to mid-May and conduct exam in hybrid mode (both offline and online) due to the challenging situation.

Nasir Khuehami, National Convenor of the J&K Students Association, said a delegation of the association would be meeting the top functionaries of the Punjab Government to discuss various issues pertaining to the Kashmiri students in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack.

J & K