Only 23% of the total number of students enrolled in the engineering colleges of Chandigarh are female, reveals a recently-released data of the National Institute Ranking Framework.
Out of a total 7,194 students enrolled in these colleges, there are only 1,680 female students.
Consider this, at the prestigious Punjab Engineering College (PEC, deemed to be a university), for a total 2,051 boys, there are only 482 girls in undergraduate four-year courses.
What’s more, in the 2017-2018 batch of mechanical engineering at PEC, there is only one girl for over 108 boys.
In Chandigarh College of Engineering and Technology (CCET), on the other hand, for 869 boys, there are only 215 girls.
The situation is just as alarming in the engineering institutes of Panjab University—University Institute of Engineering Technology and SS Bhatnagar University Institute of Chemical Engineering and Technology.
In UG four-year programmes, there are only 703 girls out of the 2,724 students enrolled, while in PG courses, there are only 171 girls out of a total 410 students.
{{/usCountry}}In UG four-year programmes, there are only 703 girls out of the 2,724 students enrolled, while in PG courses, there are only 171 girls out of a total 410 students.
{{/usCountry}}‘FIELD JOBS PERCEIVED AS UNSUITABLE’
A PEC alumna, Madhuri Bansal, says, “I passed out in 1987 and at the time, hardly 10% of the total students were females. Now, more women have started opening up to this field. Back in my time, the basic perception was that engineers get jobs in fields or industries, which are not suitable for females.”
Acknowledging the issue, director of PEC, Dheeraj Sanghi, says, “Girls don’t usually opt for engineering courses. Moreover, the social structure is such that the parents tend to spend less on girl’s coaching in comparison to a boy’s. That is one of the prime reasons why there are hardly any girls in top ranks of competitive exams.”
“Besides, since reservation for women was introduced in NITs and IITs, girls don’t opt for PEC anymore,” he adds.
WOMEN PREFER SITTING JOBS
Director of University Institute of Engineering Technology (UIET), Savita Gupta, says, “Women mostly prefer to study information technology, electronics or computer science engineering, as their aim is to get a white-collar, sitting job, instead of shift-based, field jobs provided in mechanical and civil engineering.”
Former vice-chancellor of Panjab University, Arun Kumar Grover, seconds Sanghi’s views and says that the disparity begins at school-level when girls don’t get enrolled in coaching institutes: “The same disparity continues to reflect in college enrolments. Engineering institutes have national tests and these tests require some sort of additional coaching to get good ranks.”
Grover says, “We must adopt the Maharashtra model where 30% seats are reserved for women in all state colleges. After competing for the reserved seats, eventually, the women may be enrolled through open merit.”
Principal of CCET Manpreet Singh did not respond to any queries.