AP Government plans to grade engineering colleges

The state government which is in deep trouble over the fee reimbursement arrears that amount to nearly `3,500 crore, is once again talking about a “grading” system for engineering colleges apparently to rein in the college managements. To this effect, it has directed the high-power committee set up for the purpose to grade the colleges within two weeks.

The managements, meanwhile, see it as an “arm-twisting tactic” adopted by the government to create panic among the colleges which are demanding the fee reimbursement arrears.

The government had appointed a three-member high-power committee in August last year to grade the colleges based on their faculty and infrastructure after it received several complaints that majority of the engineering colleges in the state had failed to comply with the AICTE norms despite running for several years.

Sources said that the government wants to grade engineering colleges into four categories. Top colleges will be graded “category A” and average colleges “category B”. The remaining below-average colleges will be graded as “C” and the rest will fall under the D category which are “unfit” to run classes.

The government plans to release fee reimbursement arrears on priority basis to colleges depending on the grades. While A-grade colleges will get 100 per cent of the arrears, the B-grade ones will get 50 per cent and the C-grade colleges will get 25 per cent arrears immediately. The D-grade colleges will be issued notices to comply with the minimum norms to claim the funds.

As per official estimates, less than 70 colleges out of 700 engineering colleges in the state fall under “category A”. A major chunk of the colleges are sub-standard and can be “checked” while releasing the funds.

Sources said that the government wants to bring to the notice of the Supreme Court the existing “ground realities” in colleges with regard to the quality of engineering education being offered to students after claiming huge amounts from the government. This will be done as part of its affidavit to be filed before the SC within four weeks.

ECET 2011 Notification

Engineering Common Entrance Test (ECET 2011) for Diploma Holders will be conducted on 20th May 2011. ECET 2011 notification will be released in January 2011. The ECET 2011 exam date will be finalized by APSCHE. It is most likely that ECET 2011 will also be conducted by Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University – Kukatpally (JNTUH). Admission to second year Graduate Engineering and Pharmacy courses in all private Engineering and Pharmacy colleges for the academic year 2011-12 will be conducted through rankings in ECET 2011. It is called Lateral Entry / Admission system and 10 percent of seats in all the colleges will be reserved for Diploma candidates. Diploma Holders and candidates with B.Sc. (Mathematics) Degree are eligible for ECET.

ECET 2011 qualified candidates are eligible to get admission to the following courses based on their rankings through counseling:
1. Second year B.E./B.Tech. (Regular) Courses
2. First year B.E./ B.Tech. in University Engineering Colleges
3. Second year B.Pharmacy (Regular) Courses in all universities and unaided private colleges.

Essential Eligibility: Candidates with Diplomas in following Engineering branches are eligible to apply for ECET - 2011:

1. Computer Engineering
2. Electrical
3. Bio-Medical Engineering (including Special Diploma)
4. Mechanical (includes Automobile, Printing Technology, Packaging Technology and Foot Ware Technology branches also)
5. Civil Engineering
6. Electronics and Communication. (Candidates who studied special diploma in TV and Sound Technology can also apply)
7. Chemical (including Sugar Technology / Textile Technology / Ceramic Technology / Leather Technology)
8. Mining or Metallurgy
9. Electronics and Instrumentation (including Special Diploma)
10. Pharmacy
11. B.Sc., Graduates with Mathematics.

Application Procedure: Interested candidates can obtain application forms from any of the following Andhra Bank Branches:

1. Hyderabad: Saifabad, Khairathabad, Sanathnagar, Kachiguda, JNTU ( Kukatpally), S.P. Road (Secunderabad).
2. Telangana Region: Hanumakonda, Waranagal, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Manchirial, Karimnagar, Khammam, Kothagudem, Mahaboobnagar, Sangareddy, Nalgonda,
3. Northern Andhra: Branches at Srikakulam, Vijayanagaram, Visakhapatnam, Maharanipat (Vizag), Gajuwaka (Vizag)
4. Coastal Andhra: Branches at Machilipatnam, Vijayawada, Eluru Road (Vijayawada), Bhimavaram, Tanuku, Eluru, Kakinada, Rajahmundry, Guntur, Koritepadu (Guntur), Tenali, Ongole.
5. Rayalaseema Region: Branches at Nellore, Tirupathi, S.V. Arts College (Tirupathi), Chittoor, Kadapa, Nandyal, Kurnool, and Anantapur.

Important Dates for ECET 2011:

1. Commencement of sale of applications: February 2011.
2. Last date for receipt of applications (without any late fee): Last week of March 2011.
3. Last date for receipt of filled in applications (With a late fee of Rs.500/-): Third week of April 2011.
4. Last Date for submission of applications (With a late fee of Rs.1000/-): Last week of April 2011.
5. Last Date for applications (With a late fee of Rs.5000/-): Second week of May 2011. (This facility is available at convener’s officer only).
6. ECET 2010 exam date: 20-05-2011.

Contact for more details: The Convener, ECET - FDH and B.Sc (Maths) 2011, ECET Office.

ICET 2011 Notification

ICET 2011 will be conducted on 15th May 2011 (Postponed to 18th May 2011 as NIMCET 2011 date is also on 15th). Andhra University released ICET 2011 notification on behalf of Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education (APSCHE). AU is the organising university for ICET 2011. The official notification of ICET 2011 has come out on 14th February 2011. Integrated Common Entrance Test- ICET is a single gateway for admission to MBA and MCA courses in all Universities, Government and affiliated private colleges in Andhra Pradesh.

Eligibility:

1. For MBA: Candidates should have a Bachelor’s Degree in any discipline in 10+2+3 mode.
2. For MCA: Applicants should have any Bachelors Degree with Mathematical at 10+2 level.

All candidates must have 50 percent marks in qualifying examination. Those appearing for the final year exams of graduation also can apply.

Open Universities in the state also require qualifying marks in ICET for admission to Distance Courses in MBA and MCA. There are more than 400 MBA and MCA colleges in Andhra Pradesh. You can avail ICET 2009, ICET 2010 question papers with answers / key and Last Ranks of Colleges / Seats from 2009 Counseling Cut Offs from the below given links. Following is the probable schedule of ICET 2011:

1. Issue of ICET 2011 Notification: 14th February 2011
2. Application forms for ICET 2011 will be available in designated Andhra Bank branches and E-Seva Centers across the state. Applications can also be obtained from all main post offices in the district head quarters and post offices located at university campuses.
3. Sale of ICET 2011 application forms shall begin from: 22nd February 2011.
4. Last date for submission of ICET 2011 application: 24th March 2011. (without late fee).
5. With a late fee of Rs.500 (DD): 8th April 2011;
6. With a late fee of Rs.2000 (DD): 13th April 2011.
7. ICET 2011 Date: 18-05-2011.

Late fee should be paid in the form of DD drawn in favour of 'The Secretary, APSCHE' payable at Hyderabad.

Application cost is Rs. 250. Candidates can also submit applications online through official website of ICET 2011 www.icet2011.net. Download of applications from ICET 2011 website also will be facilitated after the release of notification. Contact: Convener, ICET 2011, Andhra University. Website: www.andhrauniversity.info

Fees Reimbursement: Engg colleges, government talks fail, colleges threaten to shut down from Feb. 16

Managements of over 600 engineering colleges in the state have threatened to close down their institutions from February 16 after talks with the state government over release of funds under the fee reimbursement scheme for socially backward students failed on Friday.



During the talks with the college managements, the state offered to release Rs 600 crore while the managements demanded the immediate release of at least 50 per cent of the total dues. In all, the state government owes Rs 1,774 crore to the over 600 engineering colleges as dues under the fee reimbursement scheme.


Apart from engineering colleges, the functioning of most of the 350-odd MBA/MCA colleges in the state too are likely to be affected as they are owned by the same managements. Last year too, the colleges had shut down and resumed functioning three days later after the state called them for talks and released the funds.


Social welfare minister Pithani Satyanarayana told the media after the meeting that the government had assured the engineering college managements that it would release Rs 600 crore now and another 50 per cent of the remaining dues by March-end. But the college managements did not agree to this, he added.


Meanwhile, college management representatives said around 200 engineering, MBA and MCA colleges in the state would be forced to shut down if the reimbursement fee scheme funds are not released. "We do not receive the funds regularly. How can the government expect us to run the institutions. We will have to close them down," said K V K Rao, spokesperson for the Engineering College Managements' Association.

The managements said that the government is planning to streamline the scheme by 2012. "The government representatives have assured us that by 2012 they will be able to release funds on a quarterly basis. But till then, we cannot run the classes," said Rao. He added that the government appeared to be uncertain whether the scheme would be continued in the near future.


However, a section of engineering colleges said they would not join the strike as they were satisfied with the government's assurance to release Rs 600 crore. They, however, said that if the funds were not released by June, they would go on strike.

Tri-Valley gave its students a 20% cut to lure buddies

Students in Tri-Valley University apparently got a 20% cut from the sham varsity for every admission they facilitated: The commission was lucrative as it was calculated on the tuition fee (approx Rs 8 lakh) of the fresher. Moreover, many from Andhra Pradesh had taken a circuitous route to Tri-Valley — first joining another varsity and then landing up at the fake varsity, lured probably by its offer of instant employment.

These findings figure in the detailed report submitted by the NRI cell (at the Secretariat) to chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy. As per the report, a majority of the Indian students had moved to Tri-Valley from other universities. It also states that only a little more than 100 students who had obtained visas from US Consulates in India were Tri-Valley bound, indicating that most with F-1 visas were going to other universities.

The students needed a crooked route to Tri-Valley as it was not approved by the US to provide I-20 forms, which every applicant for student visa (F-1), needs to submit. Using illegal I-20 forms issued by Tri-Valley raised the risk of being caught during a thorough check. Consequently, students preferred to take admissions in other universities with valid I-20 forms and then used it to enter Tri-Valley.

The university, however, claims on its website that it was “authorised’’ by the US government to issue I-20 forms. But only 140 of its 5,500 students had this form from Tri-Valley. Parents have also accused Tri-Valley of running a scam even in issuing these “fake” I-20 forms.

“While most universities issue I-20 forms without much hassle, Tri-Valley University management or agents charged Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000,” said a parent from the city.

Some students from Hyderabad even received an I-20 directly from the university and it is reliably learnt that both Hyderabad US Consulate and the one at Chennai failed to detect the fraud and processed these F-1 visa forms.

In some cases it appeared that students had not really intended to move to the sham Tri-Valley unversity. For instance, a local student who went for her MBA to Schiller International University, Florida, eventually moved to Tri-Valley along with a bunch of 20 other students after her course was over. The reason? While most joined it lured by the prospect of being legally allowed to work (Tri-Valley gives Curricular Practical Training enabling students to work from Day 1 for 20 to 40 hours a week), others simply joined the bandwagon.

Now with several students being radio-tagged and interrogated for long hours, the CM on Wednesday said that the state had written to the ministry of external affairs and the Indian consulate in California to protect students and provide them with legal aid.