50 Engineering Colleges Likely to Shutdown in Tamil Nadu

At least 50 engineering colleges in the state of Tamil Nadu are facing severe crisis and are on the verge of pulling their shutters down according to the state Higher Education Department. Out of these 50 engineering colleges, at least 30 have sought permission from the Government to convert them into Arts and Science colleges. The rest have either asked for the Government’s help to shift the students to other colleges or have requested to put a full stop to the admission process from the upcoming academic year.

According to a senior official at the state Higher Education Department, the Directorate of Collegiate Education have received a request for converting into arts and science colleges from nearly 30 colleges. Immediate closure has been requested from around 19 colleges and 12 have requested to close the admission process from the upcoming academic year. The primary reason behind this is the dwindling number of admissions making it extremely tough for these colleges to manage themselves from the cost point of view.

However, some experts suggested that the process of converting these colleges into arts & science colleges will face some technical issues. Also, the process of shifting students from one college to another can be challenging for the students.

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The official also said that because the admission process in the arts and science colleges provides the colleges with an opportunity of “earning more from the admission process and donations”, it seems fit for the colleges to convert into arts and science colleges.

According to K Chandru, Retired judge of Madras High Court, there are several reasons behind this crisis. He feels that when the demand for IT-related courses was at its peak, many colleges received AICTE recognition even if the colleges did not have basic infrastructure. The misuse of the Government Order (GO) - 92 is also responsible for the miserable state of education in Tamil Nadu, belives K Chandru.

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A Higher education Sector analyst Jayaprakash Gandhi said that the lack of skilled students due to the outdated syllabus taught at some of these colleges is the main reason behind this downfall. According to him, companies nowadays hire students on the basis of their skills and not marks and certificates. The adamancy of some of these colleges to not upgrade their curriculum and low investments to prepare students for the industry is one of the main reasons behind the decline of the state of education.
While concluding, Jayaprakash he said that only those institutions will survive this turmoil who will invest in the education infrastructure even if they convert themselves into arts and science colleges.

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