Chairman Dr SS Mantha shares details about the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)
Is AICTE doing something about involving industriesIJ
We are coming up with a list of 50 institutions on a normative basis to promote research. They will provide 3,000 sq ft of their campus area to industries around the institute. We will gather information on the specific tie-ups that institutes have with industry to promote research. Based on that we will classify institutions as maybe the first 20-30 and promote them actively with collaborations with the industry. We will start with the engineering sector and will extend the scheme to management.
Will industry be a part of thisIJ And will students be able to find jobsIJ
This whole process has been on for two years and we have formed sector-specific meetings. Industry sectors have created the content. The auto content has been created by companies like Mahindra & Mahindra and Ashok leyland. In the telecom sector we are talking to Nokia. In the IT sector, Microsoft is on board. In fact, the whole training is to be provided by the industry and industry associates.
Coming to technical education, there is a lot of excess seat capacity, how is AICTE dealing with thatIJ
There are two problem areas: one, institutes in the rural sector are unable to attract the best teachers or set up good infrastructure and, consequently, students and two, even within the cities, there are vacancies, though less. There is another trend at work. In a given year, students perceive a particular branch to be of importance and rush there, creating vacancies in other branches.
So how do you increase the inputIJ
These are initiatives that need to be taken by state and central governments. I believe that setting up of a financial corporation by a state and central initiative is essential.
They should give soft loans to students at the input level, identify them and push them into the education system, either formal or vocational. That would enable your economy, GER and employability to go up.
B-schools say AICTE is forcing them to accept Common Management Aptitude Test (CMAT)IJ
We have not. The problem is today you have 20 management entrance exams plus with a host of institutions conducting their own examination. Every exam has a prospectus that costs a minimum Rs 5,000. How many students can afford thisIJ Besides, how many exams can I giveIJ So all we have said is every institution should accept a CMAT. We will be conducting this test twice every year.
Admission to engineering colleges in India is still plagued with corruption and high capitation fees. What should be done to correct the situation.IJ
We have 20-25 per cent vacant seats at the entry level in most engineering colleges. There is a state level fee committee, headed by a retired high court judge and every institute gets its accounts examined. We have a regulation for an ombudsman, every university should have an ombudsman, and every institution should have a grievance committee.
What happens in reality is that all parents want their child to get admission in a city college, therefore seats in distant colleges remain vacant and overcrowding in city-based engineering colleges gives rise to malpractices.
It’s a tug-of-war between givers and takers. Convenience therefore gets priority over regulation and all parties: students, parents, and institutions overlook regulations. If caught,however, the repercussions are bound to be severe.
The supply-demand scenario, today needs to be assessed correctly. It’s not only the education sector. We have to map the industry sector as well. So that we can create a win-win situation that will truly help increase our GDP.