CHANGE OF NAME OF ANNA UNIVERSITY UNNECESSARY
There are more than 520 engineering colleges in Tamil Nadu with around 2.5 lakh seats.
Every year more than one lakh seats go unfilled due to want of students. In many private engineering colleges , not even 30% of allotted seats are filled.
The problem is that many passed out engineers do not get jobs due to poor standards and students are realizing that they may not get jobs after passing out and engineering education has virtually lost it’s glamour.
With so many engineering colleges, experienced and knowledgeable faculties are not available and therefore, teaching standards have become poor. In number of private engineering colleges, superannuated professors continue to be faculty members , though they may not be in the best of health and may be tired.
While many passed out students face unemployment, many employers say that they are unable to get suitable candidates as number of passed out students have poor knowledge and unfit to be employed as engineers. Even one former Vice chancellor of Anna University has confirmed this is true.
What is needed is not more universities but slashing of the number of seats in engineering colleges atleast by one lakh, as so many engineers are really not needed.
The ideal situation is to convert the poorly performing engineering colleges to skill training centres with short time duration course in subjects such as artificial intelligence, advanced welding technology, etc. where job avenues are plenty for skilled people.
Without solving the problem of crisis faced by engineering education in Tamil Nadu, government is simply adding to the number of universities .
It is sad that bureaucrats and some ministers take such critical decision without consulting the senior engineers and professors .
N.S.Venkataraman
Nandini voice for the Deprived
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