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Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Maharashtra's CAP admission process now has four rounds, new rules announced
In an overhaul of the centralised admission process (CAP) for professional courses, the Maharashtra Higher and Technical Education Department has announced that the number of CAP rounds will be increased from three to four starting from the upcoming academic session. The changes come ahead of the announcement of the common entrance test (CET) results, conducted by the state's CET cell for admissions to degree programs. Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil confirmed the development, stating that a formal government resolution (GR) will be issued soon. 'These reforms are similar to the changes made in the polytechnic admission process and are aimed at making the system more efficient and student-friendly,' Patil said. This decision is intended to improve flexibility and transparency in the admission process. The department has clarified that the revised rules will be implemented during the upcoming academic session. A highlight of the new structure is the auto-freezing of seats. If a candidate is allotted a college listed among their first three preferences in the second round or among the top six in the third round, the seat will be automatically frozen. Once frozen, the student must take admission to that institution and cannot participate in further rounds. Candidates will also have the chance to modify their preferences before each of the second, third, and fourth CAP rounds. This ensures that students are provided with flexibility while also maintaining fairness in seat allocation. The new policy also brings more transparency and merit-based selection into the management quota admissions. For the first time, colleges will be required to announce complete details of the available management quota seats on the official website. In terms of fees, institutions will be permitted to charge up to three times the regular tuition fee for management quota seats. For NRI quota seats, the fee can be as high as five times the standard rate. NRI candidates must submit a certificate from the income tax department, and their admission will be governed by the Foster Parent Act. The new rules also define a clear process for admission cancellations. Students wishing to cancel their admission must submit a request online. Once cancelled, the student forfeits any claim to that seat, which will then be made available in subsequent rounds. If the cancellation is completed before the specified deadline, a refund will be issued after deducting ₹1,000 from the total fee. No refunds will be granted for cancellations made after the deadline. Colleges are required to publish the list of eligible candidates, the merit list, and a detailed admission schedule on their official websites. Commenting on the reforms, Patil said, 'These changes are in line with those implemented in the polytechnic admission process and are aimed at enhancing efficiency and making the system more student-friendly.'
News18
4 days ago
- Politics
- News18
4 Toppers, 1 Centre: Patna CET Row Prompts Maharashtra To Ban Out-Of-State Exam Centres
Last Updated: The Maharashtra government will restrict all Common Entrance Tests (CET) for professional courses to within the state from next academic year due to irregularities at Patna centre In a significant policy shift, the Maharashtra government has decided to restrict all Common Entrance Tests (CET) for professional courses to examination centres within the state, starting next academic year. With this, students from outside Maharashtra taking the CET for a course offered by an institution will have to travel to an examination centre in the state. 'To maintain transparency and prevent malpractices in the CET, the state government has decided to restrict examination centres within Maharashtra from next year," the Maharashtra Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said on Thursday. This move comes amid rising concerns over alleged irregularities at certain centres outside Maharashtra, particularly one in Patna, Bihar, which produced an unusual cluster of top scorers in the CET for the five-year LLB course. The controversy erupted after four students – Vishesh Kumar Pathak, Himanshu Jaiswal, Prakhar Jyoti, and Sanskriti Saundarya – emerged as toppers with a perfect 100 percentile in the Maharashtra LLB CET. All four had appeared from the same test centre, Maha Infotech, located in Patna. The exam was conducted on April 28 in two shifts, and although the four candidates took the test in different sessions, they shared the same location, raising immediate suspicions about the integrity of the process. Officials confirmed that only one examination centre had been set up in Bihar this year, due to around 25 students applying from the state. In total, 18 exam centres were established outside Maharashtra, but the state government has now decided to eliminate all such centres following the Patna incident. The suspicious activity of the Patna centre will be investigated, Patil told the media, adding that strict action will be taken to prevent such incidents in the future. 'Such incidents raise serious doubts and undermine the credibility of the examination process. But by conducting the CET only in Maharashtra, we can ensure better monitoring and reduce the risk of organised malpractices," PTI quoted Patil as saying. The decision aims to bolster credibility and monitoring of the CET, which is a gateway for admissions to various undergraduate and postgraduate professional courses including law, engineering, management, and more. The issue gained further gravity as it unfolds alongside an ongoing investigation into a broader CET-related scam. Earlier in March, the Mumbai Crime Branch arrested three brokers from Delhi in connection with an MBA-CET admission racket. The accused reportedly collected between Rs 11 to Rs 20 lakh from aspirants in exchange for artificially inflated scores and advised them to choose remote centres in Maharashtra districts like Bhandara, Gondia, Yavatmal, and Jalna – areas allegedly under lower scrutiny. The case involving the four Patna students is now under investigation by the Maharashtra CID. While no direct evidence of malpractice has been made public, officials say the clustering of perfect scores at a single out-of-state centre cannot be overlooked. Each year, over 10 lakh students appear for various CETs across Maharashtra, with more than 25,000 candidates previously opting for centres outside the state. However, this option will no longer be available, even to out-of-state applicants. 'The new move would not only help maintain fairness but also enhance the integrity of the admission process," Patil told PTI. He also addressed concerns over low participation in CETs for professional undergraduate courses like BBA, BCA, BMS, and BBM. Of more than 2,00,000 available seats, only 61,666 students appeared for the exam this year. 'Since many seats are likely to remain vacant, students will be given another opportunity to take the CET," he said.
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
State adds fourth CAP round for engineering admissions to curb costly pvt options
Mumbai: In a major reform aimed at making engineering education more accessible and transparent, the Maharashtra government on Thursday announced the addition of a fourth round to the Centralised Admission Process (CAP) for engineering degree courses, starting from the upcoming academic year. The move is expected to reduce the pressure on students to opt for costly private or management quota seats due to limited CAP rounds in the past. With this additional round, students will now have a greater opportunity to secure seats through the government's centralised system, which also makes them eligible for scholarship benefits. Announcing the changes, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said on Thursday, 'Just like in the polytechnic admission process, we aim to bring 70–80% of engineering admissions under CAP. This ensures greater equity and access to government-backed benefits for students.' Vinod Mohitkar, director of the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE), explained the revised guidelines for CAP seat acceptance. 'If a student receives a seat in their first-preference college in Round 1, they must confirm it immediately. In Round 2, admission is mandatory if allotted a seat within the top three preferences. Similarly, in Round 3, a seat from any of the top six choices must be accepted. These rules are designed to prevent high-ranking students from blocking multiple seats and to ensure a more efficient and streamlined allocation process,' he said. In addition to the CAP reform, the state government is set to permit colleges to charge significantly higher fees for non-CAP admissions. Management quota seats may cost up to three times the standard tuition, while NRI quota seats can command up to five times the regular fee. 'We are also working on stricter enforcement of NRI quota regulations under the Income Tax Act and the Guardians and Wards Act to ensure only genuine candidates benefit,' Patil added. The government will now require colleges to conduct institutional quota and leftover seat admissions entirely online. Colleges must publish the list of eligible candidates, merit rankings, and detailed admission schedules on their websites. This measure is expected to enhance transparency and enable students to make more informed decisions. Moreover, Patil said that the Common Entrance Test (CET) Cell has been directed to allow students to opt for management quota seats during the form-filling process itself. These applications will then be forwarded to the respective college administrations, who must make decisions based strictly on merit. 'In several cases, college managements have been denying admissions without justification. This step will ensure fair access for all interested and eligible students,' he said. An official government notification detailing these changes is expected soon.
Indian Express
5 days ago
- Indian Express
No more MH-CET exams outside Maharashtra: Chandrakant Patil
Maharashtra will no longer conduct Common Entrance Tests (CETs) outside the state, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil announced on Thursday. The decision follows recent incidents raising concerns about the exam's integrity. On Wednesday, the five-year LLB CET results showed that all four top scorers were from a single exam centre in Patna, Bihar, sparking suspicion. Earlier, in March 2025, the MBA CET was marred by reports of students receiving unsolicited calls offering admission to top institutes for hefty sums of amount in range from Rs 11 to Rs 20 lakh. A complaint to Mumbai police had led to the arrest of three people in Delhi. Stating that the investigating team has been informed of the latest development from the LLB five-year CET's result which has sparked suspicion, Patil said, 'To ensure transparency, CETs will no longer be held outside of Maharashtra.' The Maharashtra CET Cell conducts over 18 entrance exams for admission to various professional courses in the state. Some of the CETs – such as MHT-CET, MBA and LLB CETs are extended to a few cities outside of Maharashtra like Patna, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, and Bengaluru to accommodate out-of-state aspirants. 'These are anyway very limited exam-centres. Further, this year, we had already reduced outside centres post the MBA-CET issue, but couldn't cancel previously announced exams. Now, we've decided to stop them entirely,' said an official from the CET Cell. The MBA-CET scam surfaced in March after students reported calls promising inflated marks to ensure admission to coveted colleges in the city in exchange for large sums. CET Cell had formed a confidential committee to probe the matter following which the matter was reported to the Mumbai Police.
Indian Express
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Focus on goal of providing education rather than looking at deposit of scholarship money: Chandrakant Patil
State minister of Higher and Technical Education Chandrakant Patil said that self-financed educational institutions should focus on their goal of providing education rather than complaining about government assistance. Speaking at the Progressive Education Society's auditorium in Pune on Monday, Patil said, 'The state government pays 80 per cent of the (total) student fees to educational institutions in the form of 50 per cent and 100 per cent scholarships (in various categories) in the state. It is not difficult to run an institution while the government is providing scholarships. It is your responsibility…and that is not being fulfilled. Sitting nicely in an AC cabin and looking at whether the EWS money has been deposited or not…scheduled castes-scheduled tribe scheme (money has been deposited or not).' At the event, educationists raised various issues faced by educational institutes in the state. Gajanan Ekbote, chairperson of the Progressive Education Society, said around 16,000 pharmacy seats, 50,000 engineering seats, and 50,000 BBA seats were vacant in the state. In view of this situation, new colleges of engineering and pharmacy should not be approved in the state for two years. He also said non-cooperation by the Fees Regulatory Authority (FRA) was a big challenge for institutes. Ramdas Zhol, founder president of Association of Self-Finance Institutes and president of Dattakala Group of Institutes, raised issues such as irregular implementation of EWS reservation across different courses in the state, reduction in number of the many CET exams, admission of non-CET students in courses if seats remain vacant, taxation on purchase of land for educational institutes and FSI charges for the same in rural areas, and non-payment of RTE funds by the state government to schools. Patil invited the education leaders for a meeting with educational officers of the state in Mumbai and assured a resolution of their issues. However, he also pulled up the institutions and said, 'Educational institutes are not an industry, right? It is my view that you have set them up to give knowledge to people. You should concentrate on that.' Further, Patil suggested that educational institutions should take the help of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives from corporates rather than complain about government schemes. He said institutes could appoint a 'CEO' who would visit corporate offices and attract CSR initiatives. Talking about 100 per cent fee waiver for girl students in the state, Patil said, 'When no one had demanded it, Eknath Shinde and I took the initiative of free vocational education for girls. By spending Rs 900 crore, 100 percent of the fees of 50 percent of the girls were waived. Under this, the 'tuition fee' and 'examination fee' have been waived. However, 'other fees' are more than the tuition fee in educational institutions. Therefore, the question has arisen as to what about 'other fees'. Now, the idea is to bring other fees also under the fee regulations and waive them for girls, and give the amount to the institutions.' The minister also said that a 'revolutionary idea' of providing Rs 1,000-1,500 'pocket money' to college-going female students every month is being thought of. Soham is a Correspondent with the Indian Express in Pune. A journalism graduate, he was a fact-checker before joining the Express. Soham currently covers education and is also interested in civic issues, health, human rights, and politics. ... Read More
