[MTC Global] Academicians miffed with AICTE --July 3, 2012 By N. Arun Kumar DC chennai--Deccan Chronicle

Academicians miffed with AICTE

·         July 3, 2012 

·         By N. Arun Kumar 

·         DC I chennai

 

With the number of private engineering colleges increasing and with the seats in existing colleges expanding in the state, academicians are complaining that the government looks only at quantity and not quality. Former Anna University vice-chancellor and vice-chairman of the Common Wealth Science and Technology Academy for Research (C-STAR), Dr A. Kalanidhi, says that the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) does not bother about quality.

“Anybody who brings 10 acres of land gets approval to start a self-financing engineering college, which is not good. The council should look at enhancing quality rather than quantity, as it will have a larger impact on society,” he said.Pointing out that the state and Central governments had done little to improve the quality of technical education, Dr Kalanidhi said the government needs to start a special drive to enhance the number of faculty and Ph.Ds. to equip colleges which have no faculty.

Salem-based academician and career counsellor Jayaprakash A. Gandhi said in the recent past, AICTE had opened the floodgates to allow a lot of private persons to start engineering colleges in the state.“Even if you argue that new colleges should be allowed in the state, it is wrong on the part of the council to increase seats in colleges which do not have quality,” he said.

Without revealing the college’s name, Mr Gandhi said a private engineering college in the western district of Tamil Nadu had no faculty or infrastructure, but AICTE had accorded sanction for additional intake of students.“When the college lacks infrastructure and faculty, how is it possible for the AICTE’s inspection committee to recommend sanction of additional intake?” he asked.

When this correspondent sought the comments of a senior AICTE official, he said any person in this country could start an engineering college provided he had all the requisite infrastructure and faculty.“How can you stop a person from starting an engineering college if he has land and faculty? It’s survival of the fittest - only colleges which continue to provide high-quality, affordable education will survive. So, we need not worry,” the official assured.

 

 

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