In an innovative move to facilitate technical education for more students, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has allowed engineering institutes in the country to start second shifts from the 2009-10 academic session.
The AICTE, the apex body which regulates technical education in the country, has asked the interested institutes to submit applications for launching second shifts and offer courses.
“This will lead to an increase in the number of students taking admission in the institutes. As a result, more students will get engineering education,” a senior HRD ministry official said here.
According to the guidelines prepared by the AICTE, co-educational institutions having four years of standing and women institutes having three years of standing can start second shifts. However, the co-educational institutions in the states, where the number of seats available in engineering institutions per lakh population are less than all India average, are permitted for running second shifts. These states, include Assam, Bihar, Orissa, Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
“But women institutes from any part of the country can start such shifts,” the official said. There are currently 1,700 engineering institutions in India, which produce around five lakh graduates every year. If the second shift starts, a few thousand more students can get engineering education, the official said.