After candidates with marks as low as 15 were allowed to sit for the MPhil interview of the Bengali department…
Calcutta University (Photo: http://www.caluniv.ac.in)
After candidates with marks as low as 15 were allowed to sit for the MPhil interview of the Bengali department of Calcutta University (CU), senior officials of the university asked the concerned department to reconduct the entrance examination.
The Bengali department, in defiance of the existing rule which states that candidates who score above 60 per cent are eligible to appear for the MPhil interview, had allowed undeserving students. A few days ago, the Bengali department was in the news for calling back answer scripts from external examiners which led to a row.
It was only after the intervention of the state education minister that the external examiners were allowed to check the answer scripts. In the entrance test held on 26 December last year, only about five students out of a total of 148 received 60 per cent marks and therefore eligible for the interview.
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The authorities, however, decided to lower the marks criterion and allow students who received 15 and above to sit for the interview, sources said. A merit list of 46 students we re published, of which 41 are non-eligible, sources said. As most of these examinees have completed their masters from the Bengali department of CU, questions are being raised as to why they could not crack the entrance examination and score 60 per cent. The department has a capacity of 20 seats in the MPhil section.
The matter, however, reached the vice-chancellor (V-C) and after the intervention of pro V-C (academic) professor Dipak Kar, the department decided to allow only the five eligible candidates besides other NET qualified candidates to sit for the interview. The department will now have to reconduct the entrance test for the rest of the candidates. Prof. Kar remained unavailable for comment
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