Nainital: Uttarakhand high court has directed Soban Singh Jeena University, Almora, to conduct a fresh entrance examination for 20 vacant PhD history seats in strict compliance with University Grants Commission (UGC) norms. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Upadhyay issued the order after the university acknowledged that its previous entrance examination had “not followed the prescribed guidelines”.The decision came in a special appeal filed by petitioner Deepak Chandra Upreti, who challenged a single judge’s order dated Aug 19, dismissing his writ petition against the results of the PhD entrance examination.The petitioner submitted that under regulation 5 of the UGC (minimum standards and procedures for award of PhD degree) Regulations, 2022, entrance examination papers must comprise 50% research methodology and 50% subject-specific questions. However, the university’s history paper contained only subject-specific questions and omitted research methodology altogether.During proceedings on Tuesday, the court noted that of the 30 advertised PhD history seats, only three had been filled through the entrance examination, while seven had been allocated to JRF-qualified candidates, leaving 20 seats vacant.Neither the university’s counsel, C S Rawat, could identify any research methodology questions in the paper. UGC counsel Anjali Bhargava confirmed that, under the guidelines, 50% of the questions should have been based on research methodology.Following instructions from the university registrar, the counsel for the university informed the bench on Thursday that the institution had agreed to hold a fresh entrance examination for the remaining 20 seats in full compliance with the UGC Regulations, 2022. Disposing of the appeal, the court directed the university to conduct the fresh examination without delay.