MUMBAI, April 30 -- Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil has directed universities across the state to upload students' degree certificates on DigiLocker immediately after declaration of results and completion of due verification, instead of making students wait until convocation ceremonies. DigiLocker is a cloud-based digital document wallet, and as per the IT Act, 2000, documents available in its "Issued" section are legally equivalent to original physical documents. These records are considered authentic, secure and tamper-proof. The minister said that many students apply to foreign universities, higher education institutions, scholarships, internships and employment opportunities soon after their results are declared. However, the gap between result declaration and convocation often leads to delays in obtaining degree certificates, causing students to miss submission deadlines. "Students should not lose academic or career opportunities due to delay in receiving degree certificates. Once a student has successfully completed the course and the result has been duly declared, the verified degree certificate should be made available digitally at the earliest," Patil said. He also directed that a Government Resolution in this regard be issued at the earliest....