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n a significant development, Punjab Technical University (PTU) has initiated a move to scrap the Common Entrance Test (CET) from the next academic session (2010-2011) for admission to B.Tech courses in its affiliated colleges for approximately 26,000 seats for the Bachelor of Technology courses in approximately 76 affiliated colleges.

Talking to The Tribune, Dr Rajneesh Arora, Vice-Chancellor, PTU, confirmed that the university move to scrap the entrance examination from the coming academic session. “We envisage filling the seats only through the AIEEE examination. The move will save time and money for hundreds of students in addition to helping the university in streamlining the admission work.

The issue will be taken up at the meeting of the academic council, followed by a special meeting of the Board of Governors, later this month. A decision in this regard needs to be formally ratified by the Punjab government,” Dr Arora said.

Despite thousands of seat remaining vacant every year and the university allowing plus II students to seek regular admissions later on, each year the university continued to make money at the cost of hundreds who appeared for the entrance examination.

With one more week to go before the last date of counselling, August 17, for admissions in the new academic session, the university is prepared for at least 8,000 seats being left vacant.

The number of vacant seats has continued to grow over the past few years. The data supplied by the Public Cause Society reveals 3,129 seats remaining vacant in 2005, 4,400 in 2006, 3,859 in 2007 and 6,000 in 2008. This year the number of vacant seats is expected to cross 8,000.

“When in a normal class high merit in the entrance examination means nothing when admitting a plus II student later on, why should students waste their time and effort in preparing and appearing for the entrance examination? The CET appears to be nothing more than a money-making machine for the authorities,” said an engineering student from a college near Nawanshahr, affiliated to the university.

The Public Cause Society is demanding scrapping of the CET since 2005.

AK Bhandari, general secretary of the society, said, “We also object to advertisements appearing in newspapers, inviting plus two students for direct admissions. Certain states, including Haryana and Tamil Nadu, have successfully banned state-level CETs and replaced these with the national-level AIEEE. However, our government is holding the CET just to make money”.

Professor Arora said in case “the seats remained vacant after the final counselling, we might invite students from outside states”.

Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, a former Technical Education Minister, had admitted that there were no takers for 37 per cent seats in March 2007.