Student loses marks for colleges fault

Updated on: Saturday, April 09, 2011

For students with learning disability (LD), dealing with bureaucracy and apathy is almost as bad as dealing with the condition itself. Ritesh Nair, a TYBA student from St Xavier’s College, lost out on 30 marks in one of his papers because a staffer at the college had not informed him that he needed a letter from Mumbai University stating he was eligible for an extra hour in each test.

Ritesh, a student of sociology, took the first of his tests on Wednesday. The centre was Sandesh Vidyalaya, Vikroli. The college denied the LD student the extra hour on the grounds that he did not have the necessary documents.

Ritesh said: “Before the paper began, I told the exam supervisor that I had LD and would require an extra hour. After the paper got over for the other students, she left the room and another teacher walked in and requested me to shift to a neighbouring classroom where other disabled students were writing their papers.

“But when I shifted there, the teacher in charge asked me for my certificate. He saw my LD certificate, issued by Sion Hospital, but said I would not be allowed the extra hour as I did not have a special letter from Mumbai University authorizing the college to give me extra time.”

The college’s principal Balasaheb Mhatre said the boy could not be allowed extra time without the mandatory letter. The error was tracked down to an office staffer at St Xavier’s College. On Wednesday afternoon, after the paper, Vivek Tambe, the staffer, called Ritesh’s home and asked his father to pick up the letter from Mumbai University, which was lying at St Xavier’s.

Tambe told TOI that he tried telephoning Ritesh on Tuesday, but could not get through. Ritesh said he visited the college a week ago, specifically asking Tambe whether there were any documents that he needed to collect from the college. “He told me there was nothing for me to collect, and that the necessary documents would be sent directly to the exam centre.”

While his very first BA test has been ruined, the episode has left Ritesh psychologically ill-prepared for the next paper, which is on Thursday. “If such a thing has happened, it is very unfortunate. We’ll ensure this doesn’t happen again,” said Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, principal, St Xavier’s College. “This is surprising, as we have been very careful while dealing with LD students in the past.”

Student loses marks for colleges fault

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