MPhil and PhD students from central universities across the county have been demanding an extension for the submission of their thesis. The earlier deadline set by the University Grants Commission (UGC) for the submission ends tomorrow, December 31. However, students have been requesting for an extension owing to the restrictions imposed on them during the COVID pandemic.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) earlier called for a protest in solidarity with the demand for an extension by terminal MPhil and PhD batches of the university on December 19. Following protests and multiple representations, students informed EdexLive, that an extension of one month, until January 31, 2023, was granted yesterday, December 29. "We can't call this an extension. We can call it a grace period because we need time at least till March 2023," said Satyajit, an MPhil student from JNU. He recalled that a petition was filed in the Delhi High Court earlier regarding the same demand. However, it has been "temporarily withdrawn", he said.
The petition which EdexLive has a copy of, prayed to the court to, "Pass an appropriate order, direction, or writ in the nature of mandamus or any other appropriate writ to direct the Respondents to extend the deadline for submission of thesis/dissertations beyond December 31, 2022 for a period not less than six months to the Petitioner in order to meet the requirement of M.Phil degree."
However, the court sought to withdraw the petition after stating that submission of Dissertations/Theses by terminal MPhil/PhD students has already been extended by one month until January 31, 2023. Students informed EdexLive that they would file a fresh petition on January 2, 2023 challenging this and demanding a further extension.
Why are students demanding an extension?
An MPhil student from JNU stated that owing to the COVID pandemic, their two year course was compressed into three month semesters. "The session started in January 2021 but ended in July 2022. We had a gap of two to three months in between. Most of our session was covered in online mode. We did not have any peer-to-peer discussion during this time. I was interested in learning about research methods so that I can proceed with my thesis but the ecosystem did not allow me to," said Satyajit. He also stated that once the campus reopened for offline classes, he realised that he couldn't write in a way that met the requirements of an academic paper. "I was only able to write 500 words a day even though I was reading a lot. It takes time to learn how to write a 40,000 word thesis with the proper references, sources and so on," he said.
The Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA), JNU released a statement on December 17, reminding the JNU administration of the perils individuals faced during the pandemic. BAPSA further stated,"...the administration has unfairly asked the terminal PhD and MPhil students of JNU to either avail 9B according to the ordinance or vacate the hostel by December 31." The statement also criticised the protest by JNUSU on December 19 as too late for these students who are already under a lot of stress and anxiety with the deadline only less than two weeks away.
Several students and student-led associations too took to Twitter to show solidarity with students. "Phd scholars were not able to pursue their field work or due processes during the two years pandemic lockdown. If they are not given the extension they will lose their effort they put forth for the research. @ugc_india must look into it to grant considerable extension," said the Fraternity Movement on Twitter.
"My field work stopped in March 2020 and I could resume it only in August 2021 due to lockdown and other movement restrictions in the state. I couldn't work for 1.5 years. I need extension," said Asha Sasidharan (@AshaSasidharan5) on Twitter.
MPs speak up
Former Education Minister of Kerala ET Mohammed Basheer wrote a letter to the Education Minister and UGC Chairman, addressing the students' concerns. He extended his support for students of all batches from 2014 to 2020 who faced academic loss during the COVID lockdown and requested the UGC Chairman for an extension of two years.
Acknowledging that the UGC had previously approved an extended time to terminal students for submission of PhD thesis, he said that the, "benefit of UGC’s positive decision could be availed by some batches, and not by all the batches affected by the pandemic," according to reports.
Additionally, R Krishnaiah, MP, Rajya Sabha wrote a letter to UGC Chairman which EdexLive has a copy of. He stated that, "PhD and MPhil scholars have been struggling to cope up with the impact of the COVID pandemic. Hence, I request you to provide a six-month extension...as the lockdowns affected field work and lab work."
