EXAMS BOODHAM

The believers of KARMA would say that one gets deservedly punished for their sins. One’s horrified and guilty mind is culpable of conjuring various modes of punishment, both in lines of mythological realm (hell or perdition) as well as mundane. In hell, most people believe sinners are drowned in a cauldron of boiling oil or tied to bed of nails while being bitten by huge wasps, scorpions, etc.Neverthless, there are some tailor-made modes of punishments on earth with the former as a blueprint. According to my analysis, the most ruthless form of torture is awaiting for Anna University results. The onlookers feel that the candidates get to hone their skills and broaden their spectrum of knowledge by the way of going through the rigors of these exams. But they are only to be mistaken.

Leave alone the scheduling of the examination, the real agony spurs only when the exams get over. Day by day the pressure mounts and the candidate tends to lose his peace of mind. He desperately tries to stall the wheels of time in an attempt divert his mind. But all in vain. In a fit of panic he recollects all the sins that he had committed (racketing around in class, poor show in monthlies, attendance lag) and associates with the possibility of getting very mean internal marks. He spends sleepless nights, gets out of the bed to take a quick glance at the question papers, crosscheck them with books and starts self-evaluation with all permutations and combinations.Moreover, he rings up to his friends, staffs in search of solace or words of reassurement.His face turns grim when his friend claims to have done well. Also rumors of all sorts like-mere attempt, questions out of syllabuses add salt to the wound.

The blame game starts as he criticizes the staffs for not having taught the questions in class, the examiner for the reckless scheduling, electricity board for frequent powercuts, his parents or neighbors or siblings for watching TV, the weather Gods for sudden rains or scorching sun, relatives for their unexpected visits, the invigilator for wasting time in the name of verification. The list is endless and he gives them all a big damn.

As the days close in, one’s trepidation multiples that he get clouded with an array of doubts. All the philosophical quotes flash in his mind. He starts to believe in destiny.Notwithstandingly, he becomes a regular at temples, a sense of apathy creeps in and he wove to give his best in the next semester.

The adrenalin rush will be at its peak when the results get published, after a few rounds of romour.Moreover, it sometimes take light-years for the page to load. People will be glued in front of their pc's in a feverish meditation, chanting prayers, probing on what is in store. There is a hell a lot of bloggers who don’t remove the previous semester results, thereby contributing to the agony.

A day after the results, people start empathizing or sympathizing among them depending upon the magnitude of their impact. The day will be observed as a black-day in the way of mourning for the victims of the disaster. The revaluation procedure can be compared to something like the Duckworth-Lewis system in cricket. A super selector would fail to predict it.

Having gone through this grind, twice every academic year, some of them stand testimony to the saying” When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”. While many succumb to pressure. Fortunately or unfortunately, the meritorious lot gets all the accolades while the rest undergo scrutiny. Being a final year student, I am no exception!!