Two Indian state governments, Haryana and Odisha abolished the diploma entrance tests (DET) in successive weeks last month. DET was conducted every year as admission tests for various diploma courses such as pharmacy, engineering and technology, hotel management, et al. The decision by these two states to ban DET was mutually exclusive. But, the underlying motive was common: to encourage vocational education in these fields in the states.
The marks in the qualifying examinations will be the yardstick to get an admission in these courses. The working rule for lateral entries (LE) for the three to four year diploma courses will continue. Class XII with vocational training or class X with ITI or equivalent courses can seek admissions through the LE scheme.
The Skill Development and Technical Education (SD&TE) ministry of Odisha has made it clear that the DET system was removed to facilitate more easily available vocational education to the needy. There is a towering 49000 diploma seats in 121 colleges in the state with around 16 percent of seats offered in government-run colleges. Last three years have witnessed a vacancy of around 60% of these seats. The education ministry has held the strenuous DET responsible. The state government advocated of more frugal methods for these admissions. It added that the new admission process will be simpler for applicants.
Haryana education ministry has also stated that these tests were time consuming and costly. The new admission process in place is designed with the ease of applicants and guardians taken into consideration.
With the new admission system in place in these two states, it can only be hoped to get more admissions into diploma courses. Diploma courses also act as a platform for LE in many undergraduate courses offered by government-run institutions across the country. If the intake of the diploma colleges in these two states shows significant growth over the years, the number of LE applicants for undergraduate courses will also improve. These diploma courses impart basic vocational skills to students at very low costs. The increase of diploma students may therefore prove to be a viable aid in the process of abating the problem of unemployment.
The very simplicity of the new admission process can be epochal in carving out the future of those students who are left out by the arduous DET system. With the new system, more students from remote corners of these states can reach out to better education. Although, there is another belief that a single examination cannot be held as a yardstick to someone’s knowledge and with qualifying degree marks as a criteria, there might be few cases where the new system might be put through the wringer. With every coin having a flip side, only time will tell us what the current change will deliver!
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