Aazan Manzoor
Srinagar, Dec 12: A day after widespread student resentment surfaced over “hurried exam schedules” and alleged violation of the Uniform Academic Calendar, the University of Kashmir on Friday convened a key review meeting, chaired by Vice Chancellor Prof. Nilofer Khan, to assess the situation and determine the way forward.
The meeting was attended by Dean Academic Affairs, Prof. Peerzada Shareifudin, and the Controller of Examinations. The agenda was to review student complaints, departmental scheduling, and the Higher Education Department’s strict directive barring universities from holding exams during officially notified vacations.
After the review meeting, Vice Chancellor Prof. Nilofer Khan told news agency JKNS, “We will not be conducting any examinations in January.” She said that while examinations scheduled in December will continue as planned, only 1–2 spillover papers those that naturally fall in early January will be held.
“There will be no continuous examinations during vacations. Only those December exams where one or two papers extend into early January will proceed. No fresh or full-fledged January exams will be held,” she clarified.
The VC affirmed that student convenience remains central. “The issue was reviewed in detail today. Whatever we do will be strictly in the interest of students,” she added.
Meanwhile, Dean Academic Affairs, Prof. Peerzada Shareifudin, told JKNS that the University’s academic calendar runs only till December 31. “Our calendar is scheduled till 31 December, so examinations fixed for December will be completed as per plan. If in some cases one or two papers fall in early January, those will be conducted nothing more,” he said.
He stressed that the University has not issued any new datesheet for January examinations. “If any department has not issued a datesheet yet, they will conduct exams in February. Sometimes regulatory authorities like AICTE require that 1 or 2 papers fall in January that is a routine practice,” he explained.
Responding to complaints that departments announced revised datesheets suddenly and forced “hurried exams,” Prof. Shareifudin clarified the internal mechanism: “Before any datesheet is approved, the Course Review Committee meets this includes the Dean of the School, Heads of Departments, and class representatives. They are asked about syllabus completion. If they say 100% syllabus is done, then reasonable gaps are given in the datesheet.”
He added that departments whose exams begin in December will follow their notified schedules because the next semester must start on time as per the academic calendar. “Exams that begin on December 12 and other December schedules will continue. Where two papers fall in January, it is always done with student consent,” he said.
The University reiterated that no department has been authorised to conduct full exams during winter vacations, in line with the Higher Education Department’s uniform academic calendar rules.
Hours after the meeting, various departments revised the datesheets, scheduling exams in February. Documents accessed by JKNS state that for M.A. 1st semester, exams are now scheduled from 2 February 2026; for the M.Ed 1st semester, exams are scheduled from 2 February 2026; for M.A. Education 3rd semester, exams are scheduled from 3 February 2026; and for the M.Ed 3rd semester, exams are scheduled from 3 February 2026.
As reported earlier, students at the University of Kashmir from various programmes had voiced strong dissatisfaction and rising frustration over the sudden announcement of revised datesheets, accusing the University of “wrapping up exams in a hurried manner without considering students’ preparation time or academic readiness.”
Students were fuming after the issue came to light following a stern directive from the Higher Education Department (HED), which instructed all universities and autonomous colleges across Jammu and Kashmir to strictly adhere to the Uniform Academic Calendar 2022 and refrain from conducting any examinations during officially notified vacation periods. (JKNS)
