AICTE lifts moratorium for starting new colleges from 2023-24

Land exempted for Colleges only covered area required. PUCA welcomes the move

New Delhi/ Chandigarh March 23rd

While giving the biggest ever relief to Technical Education, the apex body, All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi has done away with the land requirements for starting/ running Technical Institutions.

Now on the basis of the covered area along with Floor Area Ratio (FAR) & Floor Space Index (FSI), one will be able to start or run the technical institutions.

AICTE has also lifted the moratorium for starting new colleges from 2023-24.  It is to be mentioned that since last many years there was a ban on starting new technical institutions in the country.

While welcoming the initiative, Dr. Anshu Kataria, President, Federation of Self Financing Technical Institutions (FSFTI) & Punjab Unaided Colleges Association (PUCA) & Chairman, Aryans Group of Colleges, Rajpura, Near Chandigarh said that AICTE has given new lease of life to the technical institution across nation. Kataria also appreciated AICTE for giving the relaxation on maintaining the faculty against those seats which are not filled.

Kataria further added that with the surplus land, now the colleges will be able to utilize that land for other projects which will give big financial relief to the technical institutions of the country.

Sh. R.S. Munirathinam, Patron, FSFTI (Tamilnadu) has also welcomed approval process handbook 2023-24 & mentioned that AICTE has implemented the New Educational Policy 2020 in letter & spirit. These big reforms would change the way the Technical Institutions work which will revive technical education across nation. This will also enhance the culture of education among Technical Institutions & will help them to work in collaboration with each other in a coordinated manner for the betterment of society.

He said that while launching the Approval Process Handbook for 2023-24, AICTE has announced that the existing institutions willing to take AICTE approval for their technical programme will also have to obtain approval for all technical programmes offered. If it is found that any institution has taken partial approval, then their approval accorded shall be subsequently withdrawn. The submission of online applications for academic year 2023-24 will begin w.e.f March 23 till April 6, 2023.

Sh. KVK Rao, General Secretary, FSFTI (Andhra- Telangana) while welcoming AICTE initiatives said that AICTE has also increased the maximum approved intake from the current 300 to 360 in engineering and management programmes, and from 180 to 300 in computer application programme.

Now onwards the merger of different PG diploma and MBA programmes will also be allowed as long as the student-teacher ratio is maintained. Also engineering institutions must have at least three core branches already and unlike previous year’s institutions can apply for multiple programmes from the 2023-24 session.