Engineers, are you listening?

HSC/MT-CET results are not so encouraging this year. MT CET results were announced on June 5. Reports suggest that students who have scored in the range of 140 to 160 are comparatively lesser than previous year (2012-13) and the trend continues till the score of 100. If reports are to be believed, chances are high that the cutoffs might take a dip by around 5 to 8 marks as compared to last year.

The state is already having nearly 1.50 lakh engineering seats in 364 colleges. Of these, a whopping 40,000 seats had remained vacant last year. Last year too, the apex body had approved 11 new engineering colleges in Maharashtra. With an increase in numbers, this year also a large number of seats are expected to remain vacant. AICTE had received about 180 applications from all over India for opening of new engineering colleges. Though over 2.80 lakh candidates had appeared for MT-CET for engineering admissions; not even half of them are believed to be actually taking admissions to engineering courses in the state. Presently, in Maharashtra colleges have 1, 48,084 Engineering seats!

Recently, AICTE has granted additional 10,000 degree and 8,000 diploma seats to various engineering colleges in Maharashtra for academic session commencing in June-July.

I really wonder what job the apex body is performing, with the demand-supply ratio so shaky. Why doesn’t if focus on improving the quality of education and bridge the gap between campus and industry?

Recently, a circular was issued by DTE as below. The excerpt:

"Candidate should be an Indian National and should have passed the HSC (Std XII) examination of Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education or its equivalent with Physics and Mathematics as compulsory subjects along with one of the Chemistry/ Bio Technology/Biology/Technical Vocational Subject and secured minimum 45% (40% in case of candidates of Backward class categories and Persons with Disability belonging only in Maharashtra State) marks in the above subjects taken together."

There are two perspectives for the above circular.

One, considering marks of technical vocational subjects for engineering admission is a fair decision.  Isn’t majority of engineering all about electronics and computer science?

But, the second perspective is quite surprising! Why on earth are the marks for biology being considered for engineering admission? I have no clue why such decision has been taken except for to fill the massive vacant seats. Perhaps, it also defeats the decision of including technical vocational subjects like electronics and computer science for the betterment of engineering education.

Having said that, it is clear that the apex bodies have lost focus and the quality of engineering education is deteriorating!  

The reasons for such a scenario are many. But the prime reason is the absurd stipulation that the universities and the authorities have made with regard to the minimum qualifications for teaching. For a professor's post in engineering they stipulate a minimum PG or PhD level education in engineering regardless of the experience. Whereas it is common knowledge that most of the working engineers in the industry at any level have only a degree in engineering, generally. They have gained years of actual practical knowledge in engineering whether it is in research, design, project implementation, operation, maintenance, technical management, etc after their degree level education. For the experienced engineers, a later day college education to get a PG or PhD does not add much value, unless it is for some specific purpose to gain more theoretical knowledge!

Good technocrats and engineering managers who have only a degree in engineering, but years of practical experience have better pay and facilities that they normally should not bother to switch their career to teaching side. But even those who have an inclination and liking to teaching and those who have gained years of working experience, who think of sharing their industrial knowledge to the younger generations, are restrained to do so due to such illogical rules and stipulations.

Oops, I came too long. Is anybody listening? Engineers?