The Controller of Examination/ Vice Chancellor

National University of Study and Research in Law

Ranchi; Jharkhand
Date: 22nd December 2019
Subject: In furtherance with the assessment of the research papers in the subject
Forest and Natural Resources Law.

Respected Authority,

By virtue of the present application the undersigning students register their strong protest
against the decision of the Examination Dept. to deduct 5 marks from the assessment of
‘Research Papers,’ for every student who has submitted a paper painstakingly developed by
them in one of the previous semesters.

The students hereby bring to your notice that, neither have the students been intimated of any
such deductions prior to the declaration of the internal marks, nor is there any regulation
which can be liberally interpreted to warrant such deductions.

Furthermore, the present subject of Forest and Natural Resources Law has sufficient overlap
and intersection with the courses previously studied by the students, particularly Tribal Law,
Mining Law and Environment Law. The course curriculums developed by the relevant
faculties in these subjects have sufficient overlap and intersect with each other through
multiple modules. By virtue of this singular fact it can be assumed that the subjects are
closely interlinked with one another. Therefore, it is only logical to assume that the student
too should be allowed to work on issues which have intersecting subject matters.

In fact, the UGC curriculum was available to the students before the introduction of the
present courses and the students intentionally prepared papers which have a cross-subject
identity and can be submitted for assessment twice. Not only does this improve the quality of
research but it also ensures that the students are relieved of significant burden. If the present
argument from the university is supposed to be accepted, the students shall be mandated to
write atleast 18000 words i.e. 6 papers of 3000 words each, every semester. Not only does the
university not tolerate plagiarism the teachers expect students to find inventive topic s which
develop on issues which have not been adequately addressed previously. Discerning topics,
indulging in research, collating the research coupled with developing and substantiating
arguments for six individual subjects is expected to be completed in a span of less than 2
months. Not only is this expectation unrealistic, it means that the students do not have any
time to participate in extra-curricular activities, which are necessarily the edifice of better
placements and overall growth of the students.

Furthermore, the subject faculties also mandated that a title/topic and a synopsis be submitted
prior to the submission of the final paper. Such synopsis was supposed to hold some bearing
on the final marks in said research papers. If the issue of overlap was a concern, the same
should have been highlighted at the stage of grading the synopsis.

Therefore, it is most humbly submitted that the deductions be nullified with immediate effect
and the students be graded without any deductions on the subject.

Yours Respectfully,
Undersigning students,
9th Semester
National University of study and research in Law.