The Higher Education Department has taken steps to prevent undergraduate engineering seats from going waste in Anna University.
Minister K. Ponmudi announced the time-line for counselling and seat allotment on Wednesday and said admission to engineering programmes would be delayed till the release of NEET results to prevent vacancies in Anna University.
Students with high scores tend to block seats until they get admitted to a college of their choice. In the past several years, engineering counselling had been held ahead of medical counselling. Especially since the introduction of NEET, a host of legal cases delayed medical counselling. Many students would take a seat in engineering and then move out when counselling begins for medical colleges.
As a result, at least 600 seats remained vacant in Anna University’s four departments. Mr. Ponmudi said last year 631 seats remained vacant. In 2020, as many as 750 seats remained unfilled.
One week to pay fees
The department has hence decided to give candidates seven working days to pay fees once they have been allotted a seat. “If they fail to pay the tuition fee, the seat would be allotted to the next candidate who is on the waiting list,” the Minister informed.
Candidates who are allotted seats during the single window counselling through Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions Committee will get seven working days to pay fees and confirm their seats.
The department has tied up with School Education Department and TNEA facilitation centres would be set up in 110 locations, including polytechnic colleges. Last year TFCs were established in 55 centres. Students can approach their schools, private or government, to apply online for engineering courses, the Minister said.
There would be four rounds of counselling besides separate counselling sessions for differently abled persons, wards of ex-servicemen, sportspersons and students under the 7.5% government quota seats.
Mr. Ponmudi said there would be no change in fee structure for engineering colleges this year. As for delay in holding the convocation he said the pandemic had forced to put graduation day ceremonies on hold and the University had approached the Chancellor for a date to hold the function.
Arts and science colleges
For arts and science colleges, online application registration would commence on June 27. The last date to submit filled forms is July 15. Admission would begin on July 25.
