Dhaka University to reopen halls to honours, master’s candidates on Mar 13

Dhaka University has decided to reopen the halls on Mar 13 to its honours and master’s candidates ahead of their final exams after nearly a year of shutdown due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The decision came from a meeting of the Academic Council chaired by Vice-Chancellor Md Akhtaruzzaman on Sunday, said Proctor Prof AKM Golam Rabbani.

The halls will open upon adhering to the health rules only to the honours and master’s students who had been in the halls before the pandemic hit.

They have to leave them after the end of the tests.

“We will then consider allowing exam candidates of other years to get into the halls gradually, on a priority basis when the situation improves,” said Rabbani.

The proctor said the students will be given two weeks to prepare for the exams scheduled to start from Mar 27. The full priority list of the candidates would be made public within a week.

The university offices will be operating in full swing from Feb 7

On Jan 26, the university's Provost Standing Committee recommended opening the halls to some of the students.

The university has been closed since mid-March along with all other institutions in the country due to the outbreak. It has been organising classes online but not exams.

The Public Service Commission published the circular for the 43rd BCS on Nov 30 last year with Jan 30, 2021 as the deadline for application.

It prompted the honours final-year students, whose exams had been postponed, to demand that the authorities hold the exams and give them the chance to take the BCS tests.

Although the announcement of the exams brought respite to the students, there were lingering worries over the closed halls.

Most student organisations have asked the authorities to reopen the halls.