BEd admissions to reopen on Thursday

MUMBAI: After the admission process for BEd colleges in Maharashtra came to an end last week, 100 college divisions did not have a single student. As two out of

MUMBAI: After the admission process for BEd colleges in Maharashtra came to an end last week, 100 college divisions did not have a single student. As two out of every three seats available for the course are vacant, the state has decided to reopen the admission process for a day, on Thursday.

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On Thursday, the aspirants, who took the entrance test, can apply online and mark their college preference. The admissions will be conducted on Friday.

Till last year, the students were admitted to around 550 unaided colleges on the basis of scores in a Common Entrance Test (CET) conducted by Maharashtra Vinaanudanit Adhyapak Mahavidyalaya Sansthachalk Association — an umbrella body of unaided BEd colleges, while the state held a separate CET for admissions to around 50 government-aided colleges. This year, all admissions were through the government CET.

The association said a number of aspirants couldn’t take the government CET. “The aspirants in the rural areas didn’t know that the association CET has been scrapped this year. Besides, the state closed the registration process early, leaving many students in the lurch,” said Ramzan Shaikh, general secretary, MVAMSA.

The state blamed the colleges. “The association challenged the government’s decision in the high court and told the aspirants that there would be a second CET,” said an official from the CET cell.

According to the state’s Directorate of Higher Education (DHE), around 12,000 students were admitted to over 37,000 seats in 735 college divisions across the state. The data also indicates that around less than 10 seats were filled in 300 college divisions — a division comprises 50 seats.