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With a rise in the number of technical institutes, Karnataka is facing the problem of rise in vacant students in these institutes. There are also instances of colleges closing down.
K Balaveera Reddy, former vice-chancellor of the Visvesvaraya Technological University, says Karnataka manages institutions better than other states.
In 1996, Karnataka had 55 technical institutions; now, it has more than 200. But the rise isn't really high when compared with neighbours. Andhra Pradesh had 700 institutions last year, and some 100 closed down. Tamil Nadu has around 600 institutions. Reddy says about 100 of them may shut down by next year.
Former AICTE chairman R Natarajan, also former director of IIT-Madras, says national-level enrolment has come down due to lack of employment opportunities. But the Karnataka picture is different as fresh graduates are becoming entrepreneurs, given the spread of startups in Bangalore.
