Demand for centralized counselling after colleges in Kolkata struggle with vacant UG seats

KOLKATA: The clamour for holding a centralized counselling session for admissions to the first-semester undergraduate programmes from next year is growing as more and more colleges report vacancies.
With the registration process ending soon, several colleges in Kolkata are waiting for a nod from the government and Calcutta University to conduct another round of admissions as large huge number of seats fell vacant after candidates opted to stay away from registering with the university.
The principal of Lady Brabourne College, Siuli Sarkar, reported on Wednesday that the college had 150 empty seats at present. “After the state sought a declaration from students, many opted to withdraw from the courses. We reported almost 107 vacancies. Now, as we are drawing towards closing the registration process, we have 150 seats lying vacant. This is a huge loss for the state considering the fabulous infrastructure we offer the students. We even have hostel accommodation,” Sarkar said, adding that students started to express their disinterest after the counselling process for admissions to the various engineering colleges started in September.
“It is terrible to know that we can’t offer seats to those who are genuinely interested and have been inquiring about any decision to reopen the admission process,” she said. Sarkar pointed out that centralized counselling is one of the solutions to bring an end to the vacancy issue.
At Bethune College, only 309 students have registered for the 560 seats. “We had 540 admissions in the beginning,” said principal Krishna Roy.
Several principals have written to the higher education department and CU, seeking permission to reopen the admission process. The state had closed the admissions on October 30 and the new academic session is set to start from December 1.
Another college principal explained that one of the reasons for candidates’ withdrawal could be the prevailing pandemic. “We received several candidates from districts, but some of them decided to pull out. Maybe they are unsure of studying in Kolkata amid the pandemic and uncertainty. These students may prefer a college near home,” he said. The principal added that many might have also chosen professional courses, counselling for which was on.
In Surendranath College, around 700 of the 2,500 seats in Honours and general courses are reported to be vacant. “Around 200 students, who had taken admission in the first semester, expressed their desire to leave when we sought a declaration,” said principal Indranil Kar. Several more refused to register once the process opened. “We have several seats available in economics, Sanskrit, philosophy and political science,” Kar added.