Accommodation remains the centre of the problem for students across all batches, the final year students have requested a hybrid mode of classes. A petition signed by over 40,000 students has been doing rounds urging the university to carry on with a hybrid mode and give them time to settle before joining the offline classes.

Speaking to CNN-News18 under the conditions of anonymity, a third-year student said “I am a working third-year student, who has to support my family. I am the sole earner in my house and my family is dependent on me. This abrupt reopening of classes has put me in the soup, as now I am having to decide whether I should join my classes or should I continue with my job. In such a case, a hybrid class model can be helpful.”

While there is no word from the University yet on a hybrid model, the onus lies on colleges and professors. While a department of Ramjas is planning on setting up a hybrid model so that all students get a chance to attend classes, Kamala Nehru College has decided on holding offline classes twice a week, and for the rest of the days, it will follow the online mode.

Associate professor of Ramjas College Debraj Mookerjee says, “Physical classes are eventually the only acceptable mode. This decision is therefore welcome; the calibration could have been better. The university should have considered the logistical difficulties faced by students. First-year students have barely 20 days of teaching left, they could have continued online. After all their exams will be conducted online. They could quite easily join classes in physical mode from the second semester onwards, which begins on April 7th.”

The circular to reopen colleges and resume the offline mode, was issued by the University of Delhi on February 11, after student organisations staged protests demanding to reopen colleges. DU will resume the offline mode, after 2 years since the beginning of the COVID pandemic.

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