KERALA UNIVERSITY - DISCRIMINATION IN MODERATION

Much before the IT boom happened parents in Kerala were a harried lot. They had struggled hard to find a job despite the fact they were well educated. Kerala had the highest literacy rate in India. Though they had tried their best to join an engineering college or medical college, warped and restrictive policies of successive governments had kept the number of admissions and number of engineering colleges and medical colleges in the state very low.  It was demand far outstripping availability all the time. Harsh reality forced them join Arts and Science courses and come out as graduates or post graduates. The jobs on offer were predominantly clerical either in the government sector or in the banking sector. The swelling number of educated unemployed ensured a policy of selection by elimination. It was the dream of all parents in Kerala – it still is -  to see that  their children somehow become an engineer or a doctor. While the society looked down on a clerk or a teacher, doctors and engineers were viewed with reverence as they made money much more than the average Keralite.

When our son grew up and passed SSLC examination in 1994 with distinction we encouraged him take up Biology, Physics and Chemistry group for his Pre Degree Course. As we wanted him to have a go at both medical and engineering admissions – medical seats available were limited - he was encouraged to take up Mathematics as an additional subject. The hitch was that while he was allowed to take it up as an additional subject he was not allowed to attend classes in the college for the subject. The general perception those days was that while one had to attend the classes in the college for ensuring attendance that permitted him to write the university examination, special coaching at the residence of reputed teachers alone made him get through the entrance examination that opened the doors of prosperity in the form of admission to engineering or medical colleges. The poor boy had to wake up at 3.00 AM to start attending coaching classes from 4.00AM. The morning session would be over by 8.30 AM. He would rush to the college often forgoing breakfast to attend classes there.

There was no let up in the evening. As soon as the sessions were over at the college he had to rush to the coaching classes that began at 5.00 PM and lasted till 9.00PM. We found him reaching home at around 10.00PM. The punishing schedule made him go to sleep the moment he reached home. The two years of Pre- degree was sheer hell for the boy.  To be fair our son was studious. We observed that he was making a sincere effort to secure a high rank in the entrance examination to ensure his entry to a medical or an engineering college. However the results belied our hopes and dreams. His rank in the medical stream was very low. He had a good rank in the engineering stream. However he could secure 46% only for Mathematics in the Pre degree examination of 1996.  The rules of admission those days were that unless one had 50% marks for Mathematics in the Pre degree examination he would not be admitted to an engineering college in Kerala even if he had secured a good rank in the entrance examination.

The Kerala University was very magnanimous that year. The University found that quite a large number of students with a good rank in the entrance examination would be unable to join the engineering colleges in Kerala  for the simple reason that their marks in the Pre degree examination was below the mandatory 50%. The University issued an order granting a moderation of 4% for Mathematics for the regular students of Pre degree that year. It meant that if a student who had taken up the Mathematics, Physics and chemistry group for Pre degree in the regular batch had succeeded in obtaining 46% marks only for the Pre degree examination that year he would be granted an additional 4% to raise his marks to 50% to secure admission to an engineering college. Our son was a regular student in the Biology batch.Though he had secured 46% in Mathematics he was denied the magnanimous moderation  because he had taken up Mathematics as an additional subject.

Finding the discrimination unjust we had submitted a request to the Vice Chancellor of the university to extend the moderation to all the students who had appeared in the examination no matter whether they were regular or otherwise. The Vice Chancellor promptly forwarded the request to the Controller of Examinations of the University. We learned later that the exalted official while declining the request took a firm view that those who did not know how to get 50% marks in the Pre degree examination for Mathematics could not be allowed to join an engineering college in Kerala conveniently forgetting that he had authorized granting of moderation to regular students who had obtained 46% marks for Mathematics.

We had presented the issue to almost all the newspapers in the state. None of them were prepared to publish the matter and antagonize the University. However one kind soul advised us to file a suit at the High Court where he was certain justice would not be denied. We did not file a suit because we did not have the resources to file a suit and fight the University that had enormous resources at its command.