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Although DU has reopened in a graded manner, the attendance has been lower than expected. While the fear of the pandemic can be considered as one of the reasons behind this, another reason that can’t be overlooked is the struggle of the outstation students who can’t come back to the campus as many hostels are yet to reopen.
“Only final-year students in small batches will be allowed to visit their respective colleges for the laboratory/practical sessions and other related activities such as projects, training, and placements as per the discretion of the respective principals. This is in line with the UGC guidelines and SOPs and MHA order,” says DU registrar Vikas Gupta while talking to Education Times. The measures, he says, are being taken to prevent covid spread in addition to addressing parents’ concern about students’ well-being.
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“Colleges have also been asked to open their hostel facilities for which students will be allowed in batches. There are around 20% outstation students for whom hostel is a necessity even as they are expected to attend the practical sessions.” Gupta adds.
“Final-year students need to complete their practicals since degrees cannot be awarded without completion of course content. This, however, is not the case with first/second-year students who can complete their practicals once colleges open fully in the next academic session. Gupta says.
According to The Times of India, Ramjas College saw only eight students at the campus on the first day of reopening and only one student at the Chemistry lab. “We cannot compel them as they are expected to attend their practicals voluntarily. Students from Delhi-NCR facing border tensions, or from across the states facing severe covid situation are yet to join,” Manoj Kumar Khanna, principal of Ramjas College, told the newspaper. In the last semester, the college had used virtual labs to conduct the practicals, but with the situation yet to normalize, 100% attendance is not a feasible option, he adds.
Babli Moitra Saraf, principal of Indraprastha College for Women, told the newspaper that her college is functioning fully and teachers are conducting online classes, but providing hands-on training to the students from the far-off areas has proven to be quite challenging. “It is too early to say how the situation will unfold. The departments have announced the schedule for practical classes but will keep it flexible to suit students’ needs and their presence in the city,” she told the publication.
Anju Srivastava, the principal of Hindu College, said that students have been “trickling in” for the practicals of Zoology and the Physical Sciences. “The college had created video demonstrations of experiments and virtual simulations for Physics that had worked well but there is no substitute for a hands-on experience which is what we are trying to implement,” she said.
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