University admission seekers and their guardians are worried because of the deferral of admission tests in public universities for general strikes and blockade enforced by opposition political parties.
Political programmes have also caused inconvenience to the admission who cannot move about freely to take the tests. As there is shortage of seats in public universities, aspirants usually apply for admission in several universities and need to travel from one city to another.
Admission tests usually take place on Friday but general strikes and blockades enforced before and after the tests causes suffering to admission seekers from far-off places.
Admission tests for first-year bachelor’s courses in seven public universities were deferred because of general strikes and blockades enforced by the opposition alliance.
Admission test in two other universities were deferred because of movements by local people. Students seeking admission to at least three universities suffered as the opposition alliance enforced a general strike on the day before the admission tests.
Admission tests in the Islamic University was differed three times and admission tests for two units in the University of Chittagong were deferred twice.
The University of Dhaka postponed interviews for subject selection scheduled for November 29.
On Wednesday, the Islamic University deferred the admission tests for the third time. The next date of the tests will be announced later, the authorities said.
Convener of the university admission test committee Abdul Hakim Sarkar said, ‘We are trying hard to set a date but failed every time for some reasons.’
Barisal University differed tests for unit A, B, C and D to December 7 from November 28, a release issued by the university said.
Admission tests in Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University scheduled for November 29 was postponed for an indefinite period. Admission test in Sylhet Agricultural University scheduled for December 1 has also been postponed.
The Chittagong University registrar, Safiul Alam, said that tests of unit H and G had been deferred to December 7 from the scheduled November 29. With this, the date has been changed twice.
The universities said that the tests had been deferred for ‘unavoidable reasons’ but officials said that the tests had been deferred because of general strikes and blockades.
Rajshahi University admission test had been rescheduled to December 5–9 form the original scheduled of November 10–14 because of the 84-hour general strike the BNP-led alliance started enforcing on November 10.
Comilla University postponed its admission test scheduled for November 6-8 and the new date was yet to be published.
Admission seekers of unit B and C in Dhaka University, Jagannath University, and Bangladesh Agricultural University in Mymensingh also suffered because of either the general strike or the blockade day before of the tests.
The combined tests for admission to Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and Jessore Science and Technology University scheduled for November 30 have been postponed amid protests in Sylhet.
Faisal Amin, a guardian of an admission seeker, said that he was passing sleepless night worrying about the future of his son as he was yet to qualify for admission to Dhaka University. ‘I do not know whether my child will be able to take any further admission test as strikes and blockades are taking place.’
A total of 7.45 lakh students passed the HSC and equivalent examinations and were making preparations for admission tests.
The University Grants Commission chairman, AK Azad Chowdhury, said that admission tests for universities were in jeopardy. He also feared that a delay in admission tests could have a long-term adverse impact on the academic calendar of the institutions as academic life could be prolonged in several universities.
Because of the ongoing political turmoil, students are also facing difficulty in taking the primary completion exams. Examinations for 3 days out of the 6 have so far been deferred.
This year, Junior School Certificate examinations of four days were deferred. Several examinations of the SSC and the HSC were also deferred because of political programmes.
Annual examinations of class I-IV and VI–IX are also being hampered because of the same reasons.
The opposition alliance threatened tougher programmes if its demand for a non-party, election-time government was not met.
The education minister, Nurul Islam Nahid, urged all political parties not to plan any political programmes that could harm the academic life of children, ‘Such political activities are delaying examinations and putting pressure on examinees. Many of them may fail to achieve desired results,’ he added.
-With New Age input
