Engineering students will agitate in the University today to protest against delay in ATKT results which prevents them from taking their final year exams

Protest first, exams later

Engineering students will agitate in the University today to protest against delay in ATKT results which prevents them from taking their final year exams

If you see a group of people standing outside the Pune University vice-chancellor's (VC's) office today, don't be surprised. Students' representatives from approximately 40 engineering colleges affiliated to the university have decided to hold au00a0 protest to make themselves heard.

Flashback: NSUI members protesting against 'anomalies' in selection
process for various jobs at Pune university last year. File pic

Their grouse is that they want the university to allow them to write their final year exams although they haven't passed their second year papers yet. According to students, the engineering syllabus is going to change next year and feel that it is unfair for them to study a new syllabus all over again.

The university rule is that every student is allowed ATKT (allowed to keep term) in three theory papers.
"Many of us had failed in one subject in the second year but cleared our third year, as we were given an ATKT.
At the same time we gave our exams again for the failed subjects but the University declared the results late and it is only now that we got to know that we have not passed our second year exams," said a third year student on the condition of anonymity.

"Students have already finished some portion of the final year syllabus and if they are not allowed to write examsu00a0 they will have to study a new one. We tried explaining the plight of the students but the officials did not even listen to our complaints. Thus, the protest," said Rahul Mhaske, city president, NSUI.