550 AICTE affiliated engineering colleges shut down in 6 years
As per the data available with the All Indian Council for Technical Education (AICTE), an upward trend witnessed in engineering colleges since 2012-13. The decline began only after 2016-17.
More than 550 engineering colleges and institutions affiliated with the AICTE have winded up operations in the past six years. As per the AICTE data, while the number of engineering colleges increased to 6,474 in 2016-17, the same stands at 5,917 in the current year, suggesting that 557 engineering colleges were closed. As per a report published in India Today, the data also suggests how an upward trend was witnessed in engineering colleges since 2012-13. The decline began after 2016-17.
Number of engineering seats drop in 2021-22
The data shows that the number of seats available has also gone down sharply. While the total number of seats available in 2016-17 were 29.99 lakh, the number has dropped to 23.61 lakh in 2021-2022.
“Two things have resulted in the decline in seats or the reduction in number of colleges. Firstly, there was a boom which resulted in new engineering, and other colleges, which resulted in several of them functioning with less takers and more vacant seats,” said AICTE Chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe. “Ultimately these institutions shut down, or reduced the number of seats available in their institutions,” he said.
“Secondly, several states through passage of bills and acts, have established engineering colleges and universities, where students have taken admissions. These do not fall under the ambit of AICTE,” he explained.
Engineering colleges affiliated with AICTE see downward trend
Here are the number of engineering colleges and institutes in India affiliated with AICTE as per data of different years:
| Academic year | Number of engineering colleges |
|---|---|
| 2016-17 | 6,474 |
| 2017-18 | 6,445 |
| 2018-19 | 6,275 |
| 2019-2020 | 6,164 |
| 2020-2021 | 6,053 |
| 2021-2022 | 5,917 |
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