More Intermediate seats than SSC pass outs.

More Intermediate seats than SSC pass outs.

HYDERABAD: The state government seems to be setting up educational institutions without assessing the demand-supply situation on the ground. The Board of Intermediate Education (BIE) has decided to sanction 1,600 junior colleges for the coming academic year (2011-12) and also additional seats in the existing 500 corporate junior colleges.

While the addition is supposed to increase the number of intermediate seats from 19 lakh in 2010-11 to 25 lakh next academic year, the number students expected to clear SSC-2011 examination is just about 10 lakh. This would mean that about 23 per cent of seats in first year would remain vacant next year.

“There were colleges where just about 30 to 40 students had taken admission. If the government sanctions more of such colleges, there would be institutions with zero admissions next year,” said Madhusudan Reddy, general secretary, Government Junior College Lecturers’ Association. There are about 4,800 junior colleges in the state, of which 3,500 are private ones. The number is expected to go up to 5,100 in 2011-2012. Ironically, while there are just about 820 government colleges, the state has not sanctioned more colleges in the government sector.

Sources from the BIE said that with disproportionate increase in the number of intermediate colleges, private college managements are now vying with each other to attract students. “Colleges try to lure students promising them scholarships and other concessions. Students are also promised freebies including DVD players, laptops and even foreign trips,” sources said.

Several corporate colleges which take sanction from the Board sell the property to other managements after three to four years. “Every year about 300 colleges are being transferred from one management to other. This is against BIE rules,” an official said. Also, most of the colleges get sanctioned in cities including Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy, Vijayawada and Vizag. “Seventy per cent of the colleges are located in these cities even as 220 mandals in the state do not have even a single college,” Madhusudan Reddy, pointed out.

Observers opined that the state government should bring in a legislature to prevent mushrooming of colleges. “If the state government allows unusual surge of colleges, the quality of intermediate education would obviously decline,” said an official.

Source : TOI