Nagpur: Principal in AC Cabin, Students Sweat in Exam Centres

Lokmat News Network (Nagpur)

Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University students are sweating it out in extreme temperatures that touched 45 degrees while writing examinations due to apathy of exam centres. The university examination department was flooded with calls from the students and parents complaining about lack of basic facilities at their respective exam centres.

The university is conducting summer exams in two shifts. The morning shift starts at 9.30 am and the afternoon shift starts at 2.30 pm. The students appearing for exams in both the shifts are complaining about lack of basic facilities like coolers, fans, and drinking water at their respective exam centres.

At one centre when parents approached the principal, they found him sitting in an airconditioned cabin while students were left to suffer the extreme heat. "This is horrendous. Would he bear it if his children were sitting for the examinations?" asked an aggrieved parent who also complained that the premises of the centre was without any shelter of any sort where parents could wait when their wards gave the examination. "They don't even have trees and so no shade," she said.

Every year the university issues an advisory to the exam centres, which are affiliated colleges of the university, to provide basic facilities to students. However, exam centres seem reluctant to provide such facilities.
Students from rural areas complained that exam centres were not even providing drinking water. Though the students were advised to bring their own water bottle in many cases it proved insufficient in the scorching heat.

A student from Patanswangi in Nagpur district informed Lokmat Times that some students felt uneasy due to the scorching heat. They complained about their health to the invigilator, but he remained unresponsive. The students then took a break and completed his exam. But the centre incharge had not provided any facilities to students.
When contacted the director of examination Dr. Prafulla Sable admitted that he had received complaints from students about lack of facilities in exam centres. "We have taken cognisance of these complaints and issued advisories to the exam centres" he added.

Looking at the extreme heat, the exam centres should immediately make provisions for coolers, drinking water and first aid facilities at the centres, he added. "We are uploading a new circular listing out the facilities to be provided by every centre. If these colleges can't provide even basic facilities, then the university will review the status of the exam centre" he added.

Students that Lokmat Times spoke to said they had been given centres which were quite far from their respective colleges. "We wouldn't mind going when the weather is okay, but this is energy sapping," said a student requesting anonymity. "We are having to compromise for the same of the examinations," he said.

Another student said that fans at her centre were not working and the class room was "extremely suffocating". "The benches too were very low and most of us found it difficult to crouch down and write our papers," she said of her centre. She complained that water was offered once and "when we wanted another glass we were told to go to another floor as the facility had been provided there." The student said many preferred remaining thirsty than wasting time to look for water.

"The temperatures are too high and though we have coolers at home, we expected that fans would at least be working properly," said an examinee who found the fans at her centre without regulators and rotating at a fixed slow speed. "This adds to the stress," she complained, pointing out that students were expected to sweat it out for three whole hours while sitting for their papers.