With nearly no admissions, private colleges in Telangana have been facing a tough time. As a result, 40 of them have shut down permanently while several other colleges have closed temporarily.
According to an official in Telangana State Board of Intermediate Examination Education (TSBIE), there are nearly 300 private colleges in the state which are non-functional, with no student intake.
“There are only 1753 colleges in Telangana which are functional, however, close to 300 colleges are temporarily closed due to no admission or very less admission in the institute,” said Susheel Kumar, controller of examinations in TSBIE.
According to All India Survey of Higher Education, 76% of colleges in the country are private. Almost 82% of colleges in Telangana are private educational institutes.
The number of private colleges has been on the rise, however, the number of students taking admissions has gone down.
“Most of the students are going out for better education. Either they go abroad or go to other states to study. That means the number of students has been coming down as more and more of them are preferring to study outside, but the number of colleges has increased,” said C Ramaiah, a Hyderabad-based educationist.
According to the expert, nearly 40 private colleges in Telangana have closed down due to lack of admissions and many colleges are being used for other purposes like function halls due to the same reason.
“In today’s date, any businessman having enough land has been opening a college. The education system has become a business in the state. But they fail to provide good quality of education with proper teachers,” he says.
The main reason for colleges not getting enough admission is lack of employment, says Ramaiah.
“Even after studying in colleges, only 10% of the students are eligible to get employed. Rest of the students do not have the requisite skills to apply for jobs. The government has been neglecting the education system in the state. There is no employment for students who have completed their studies,” said the educationist.
He also says that the students who used to prefer private institutions because they offer better facilities, have been facing difficulty in getting proper jobs.
“People open colleges but fail to provide good quality education due to which the students are also not satisfied with the kind of jobs they are getting. For instance, an engineer is applying for the job of a constable or other posts. Also, there are no proper job opportunities in the state,” the educationist added.
According to a report, In 2016, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) received about 40 applications for closure from private managements in Telangana.
“Only after checking the documents and proper inspection, the colleges will be allowed to shut down if everything is satisfactory,” said Susheel Kumar.
Nearly 300 colleges have approached the AICTE for reducing intake in undergraduate and postgraduate courses for the next academic year citing non-availability of students, said Ramaiah.