800 engineering colleges to close over low quality, admissions

BENGALURU: The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) wants to close down about 800 engineering colleges across India as there are no takers for their seats, and admissions are plunging in these institutions every year, AICTE chairman Anil Dattatraya Sahasrabudhe told TOI.

There are approximately 150 colleges which are closed down voluntarily every year due to stricter AICTE rules. According to a rule of the council, colleges that lack proper infrastructure and report less than 30% admissions for five consecutive years will have to be shut down, he pointed out.

Sahasrabudhe was in Bengaluru on Friday to inaugurate the 'Green Hand' sculpture, signifying the pivotal role humankind plays in preserving and nurturing the environment, at New Horizon College of Engineering, Marthahalli.

According to its website, AICTE has approved the progressive closure of more than 410 colleges across India, from 2014-15 to 2017-18. Twenty of these institutions are in Karnataka. A maximum number of institutions was approved for closure in 2016-17. Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have the maximum number of colleges which have sought progressive closure. Failing to survive, private engineering colleges either seek progressive closure and ultimately shut down or turn into polytechnics or science and arts colleges.

Progressive closure means the institute cannot admit students to the first year in that academic year, for which progressive closure is granted; however, the existing students will continue. He also advised engineering colleges and universities to revise and renew their syllabus, which is the major cause behind the fall in the number of admissions and quality of education they impart.

With the quality of engineering education and balance in the number of engineering students and their employability being big challenges, AICTE has introduced the plan for teachers' training."Most engineering college professors or lecturers are MTech or PhD holders. They don't usually have experience in teaching aspiring engineers. Now onwards, any engineering college lecturer joining anew will have to undergo six months of exclusive and compulsory training so that they can train future engineers better. Existing engineer lecturers have three years to undergo this training compulsorily," Sahasrabudhe said.

AICTE is also looking at making engineering students industry-ready so that they are hired on time. From this year onwards, every secondand third-year student will have to undergo internship compulsorily so that they are hired even before campus placements.

"Internship is the time when most students are observed by companies and have a fair chance of being absorbed. So it's better to be hired that way instead of depending on just five minutes of interview at campus placements. My advice to budding engineers is that they should be attentive and hardworking during internship," the chairman said.

Source: The Times of India