Eight students from two engineering colleges situated near the city are in a quandary as the University of Kerala is yet to locate their answer papers of seventh semester B.Tech. examinations.
An internal probe conducted by the Joint Registrar of Examinations, on the basis of an order issued by the Pro-Vice Chancellor, found the papers missing from the valuation centres at College of Engineering, Trivandrum, and Thangal Kunju Musaliar College of Engineering, Kollam. Controller of Examinations Madhukumar told The Hindu that the probe revealed a lapse by an administrative officer.
“However, we have not given up the search, especially after one of the colleges informed about duplication in entering the code. So a team is still searching for the answer papers in the two valuation camps,” he said.
Decision soon A decision has to be taken within a few days as prolonging the search would prevent the students from appearing in campus interviews. The standing committee, which may meet this week, would take a final call, he added.
Sources in the university said that if the answer papers were not traceable, re-examination would be the only option as the earlier practice of giving an average mark was not advisable. “In the past, we used to calculate the average marks of other papers attended by the student during the same time and then allocate it for the missing paper. But the option cannot be encouraged. So the only way is to conduct re-examination,” a source said.
The latest missing case of answer papers, Mr. Madhukmar said, has prompted the university to rework on the method followed in false numbering.
New system The university was planning to constitute a separate team to do the false numbering, rather than entrust it to multiple teams, he added.
The university would also see whether false numbering can be automated and brought under the indigenously developed System for Automated Governance of Examinations (SAGE) system, he added.
