Mumbai: City colleges face empty future, more than 1 lakh seats vacant

With the Std XI centralised admissions process finally ending, there are more than one lakh seats out of 3 lakh 26 thousand, still vacant. While colleges are facing the vacancy issue, it has been proved that there was no need of an increased intake in FYJC (first year junior college) seats, that was granted by the state government at the beginning of the year. The state government had taken this decision, to allow a 10 per cent increase in seats, after a drop in the SSC results led to worries that state board candidates would lose out on colleges of their choice. However, at the end of the process, it emerged that there was no cause for concern as out of a total of 2,18,725 seats, for which admissions took place, 1,97,487 have been given to candidates from the state board.

The centralised process for FYJC admissions continued till late October. After receiving much flak over changing the evaluation pattern of the SSC examination that led to drop in the result percentage, the state government declared 10 per cent increase in seats so that all students get the opportunity to take admission in college of their choice. This was done following allegations that because of a poor SSC result, non-state board students will get a higher benefit in bagging admissions to good colleges. Now at the end of the admissions process, colleges face severe vacancy, especially the new ones, without much demand.

"The increase in intake should have been valid only in colleges which were asking for it instead of making it mandatory for all. We already struggle to fill seats and now, we have this huge vacancy staring at us. We are not even allowed to fill these seats any other way, as all admissions have to take place through the centralised process, which has ended," said the principal of a college in Borivli, requesting anonymity. An official from the DYDE office said, "Increase in intake was a response by government to calm down angry parents of state board students."

The highest number of admissions have taken place in the commerce stream with 1,34,733 candidates followed by science (59,109) and then arts (21,627).

Number of candidates from different boards

SSC - 19,7487
CBSE - 7,183
ICSE - 10,124
IGCSE - 1,206
IB- 10
NIOS - 713

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