21 engineering colleges in Karnataka, 31 in Tamil Nadu, out of 800 colleges across India to be shut down

Over 800 engineering colleges across the nation have been asked to shut down from the next academic year 21 engineering colleges will shut down in Karnataka The colleges are being shut down due to lack of new admissions and drop in quality of education

Over 800 engineering colleges across the nation have been asked to shut down from the next academic year by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICET).

The colleges will be shut down as there are no takers for their seats, and admissions are plunging in these institutions every year.

The New Indian Express reported AICTE authorities saying colleges with less than 30% admissions in the last five years have been asked to close down. “We have also given them an option of getting merged with nearby colleges,” said AICTE chairman Dr Anil Sahasrabudhe to NIE. “The decision to close down colleges was taken after studying details of intake at all colleges across the country in the last five years,” he added.

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, the hub of Engineering studies.

Tamil Nadu will see the closure of 31 such institutions.

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 according to the Times of India.

A progressive closure means that the college can no more admit students to the new batch but the existing students will continue. Engineering colleges have also been advised to renew their syllabus, which is considered to be the main factor in the fall in quality of education in several institutions.

From this academic year, every second and third year student will have to undergo a compulsory internship so that they are hired even before campus placement. As per TOI report, Sahasrabudhe said, “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 the interview at campus placements.”