Thiruvananthapuram: As many as 12 engineering colleges, part of the allotment pool last year, do not feature in this year's admissions as they have either shut down or have been placed in the no-admission category. This year, the total number of BTech seats in colleges in the state will be 54,225, compared to 58,844 sanctioned by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) last year. This is a drop by 4,619 seats.
The colleges that will not admit students are: Archana College of Engineering, Palamel, Ala ppuzha; Aryanet Institute of Technology, Pudupari yaram, Palakkad; KMP College of Engineering, Cherukunnam, Perumba voor; KVM College of Engineering, Cherthala; Mukambika Technical Campus, Edappally; Pankajakashturi College of Engineering, Kandala, Thiruvananthapuram; Pinnacle College of Engineering and Technology, Anchal; Prime College of Engineering, Erattayal, Palakkad; Shahul Hame ed Memorial Engineering College, Kadakkal, Kollam; St Gregorios College of Engineering, Enmakaje, Kasargod; Travancore Engineering College, Oyoor and Younus Colle ge of Engineering and Technology, Vadekkevila, Kollam.
Sources said that the applications of three colleges to convert to polytechnics were rejected by the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University. A major reason for closure of the colleges is low intake of seats. Only 30,200 seats were filled in the last academic year in the state. Most of the vacant seats were in private self-financing engineering colleges. The APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University had permitted transfer of the students to other affiliated institutions except government and aided colleges.
Since 2016, the number of engineering seats has been on the decline across the country. In 2016-17, the total intake for BTech in the country was 15, 71,220. However, the total enrolment was 7, 87,127, which was around 50.1 per cent. It was in this context that the AICTE wanted to close down about 800 engineering colleges in the country. The AICTE has sought the closure of colleges that lacked proper infrastructure and had less than 30 percent admissions for five consecutive years.
