Unified University and College Management System (UUCMS) is a project to digitise the activities of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Everything from admissions and examinations to awarding degrees will be done within this portal. It also includes features like class monitoring, lesson plans,and student attendance that are supposed to be managed using UUCMS. Even Faculty management features like performance assessment and promotion are included in UUCMS. In Karnataka, UUCMS was introduced in 2021 under the BJP government as part of the implementation of NEP 2020.
Since its very inception, UUCMS has been mired in controversy as students have found it very difficult to deal with. This is mainly attributed to the fact that the portal is full of technical glitches. Even after more than 3 years of functioning, the glitches are yet to be resolved. It must also be noted that introducing a centralised online portal for students coming from all colleges, be it private or public, both from rural and urban areas, is an exclusionary move.
With regular glitches and lack of access, UUCMS has become a real barrier to get proper marksheets, clearances, etc. for the students. The situation demands urgent intervention given that the 2021 batch students graduated in 2024. The students in Karnataka are facing a delay in the distribution of marks cards to undergraduate and postgraduate students across 22 universities, affecting over 51 lakh students. Even after replacing the NEP with a state education policy that is yet to see the light of the day, students have been unable to obtain either digital or printed marks cards. This has caused serious problems for students applying for higher education, scholarships, and hostel accommodations.
Centralising measures in education, be it in the form of UUCMS or centralised exams, do not serve the interest of the students. These on one hand make education exclusive to a specific section of well-off pupils, on the other hand it ensures a lot of control on students’ futures in government hands. Both these problems do not bode well for the education sector in our country.
