Data of the past four years from the Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions (TNEA) show that barely half the number of sanctioned seats under government quota have been filled during the single-window admissions.
The number of colleges under the single-window counselling has been steadily falling. The details for this year are yet to emerge as Anna University is yet to finalise the list of colleges that have obtained the approval of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
This year, the number of engineering aspirants registering for the counselling has crossed 2.11 lakh. The final count stood at 2,11,905 (as of July27), according to the TNEA. It had given two additional days – the deadline for which ended on Friday – to complete the registration and fee payment, which would make candidates eligible for certificate verification and counselling.
With many engineering colleges seeking the closure of traditional courses such as civil and mechanical engineering, it remains to be seen how many B.E./B.Tech seats would be available in Tamil Nadu. It is also pertinent to note that the last academic year saw the steepest fall in admission, with as much as 62% of engineering seats remaining vacant.
There is euphoria among colleges about the rush for management quota seats in computer science and engineering and related fields but the actual picture would emerge only during counselling for government quota seats. Some colleges said electronics and communication engineering was also receiving patronage from aspirants.
A few weeks ago, the students had shunned this branch in favour of newer courses such as artificial intelligence, machine language and data science.
Compliance to AICTE norms
Meanwhile, this year, Anna University has warned of strict action against colleges that do not comply with the AICTE norms. According to Vice-Chancellor R. Velraj, more than 200 colleges were found to have deficiencies during inspections by the affiliation committees.
Some college principals have questioned the method of inspection itself. The principal of a college near Chennai claimed that there was no clarity among the inspection team visiting colleges. “If someone was found eligible to be a teacher last year, how can they become ineligible this year? The Anna University team is not properly apprised of the process,” he alleged.
Another Principal pointed out that the team spent just half-a-day in a college. “How can they inspect the library and laboratory all in one go in just a few hours,” he said.
Mr. Velraj said a meeting would be held shortly to assess the colleges’ compliance status. Some colleges only had a 25% deficiency, while others had already sent a compliance report.
“We have reported some deficiencies for which we have been receiving a compliance report, and some colleges have asked for an extension. But everything depends on the approval of the AICTE,” he said.
