Coming as a big disappointment to several chess players applying to the Delhi University under the sports quota this year, no relief has been given to them in the physical prudence test.
Several complaints were put forward in the past regarding the relaxation of criterion for the physical prudence test for chess players as it is an indoor game and doesn’t need strength, speed or endurance. While students applying under chess, archery and shooting need to qualify only one of the three tests unlike two for others, the test has not been done away with by the university.
University officials state that since the admission is under the sports quota, students must have at least basic fitness even if they play chess.
“The point is that everyone brought in through sports quota must be fit. It doesn’t matter if the student plays chess, but one should at least have some stamina to be eligible under the sports category,” said an official from the Dean of Students Welfare office.
The guidelines for sports quota give 75 per cent weightage to certificates and 25 per cent weightage to trials. However, to get considered for this, the student must clear the physical prudence test.
According to the current rules for the test, which came into existence from last year after a Delhi High Court ruling, to meet the criteria for admission under the sports quota, a student has to undergo a physical fitness test comprising of three segments and qualify at least two of them. They are standing broad jump of 1.65m for boys and 1.15m for girls to judge strength, one kilometer race or walk in five minutes for boys and six minutes for girls to judge endurance and 50m dash in eight seconds for boys and nine seconds for girls to judge speed. However, any student applying under chess, archery and shooting needs to qualify only one of these.
Earlier, all students irrespective of the sport had to qualify all three criterions.
In 2012, an order issued by the Delhi High Court had asked the DU to frame new rules for sports quota adding that the earlier criterion was apt and justified for outdoor and indoor games where physical involvement was the key, but it was not rational to have this criterion for games like chess. However, the university only relaxed the test but said that since physical fitness leads to mental fitness, the same will not be removed.