Madras HC directs Anna University to publish the rank list of all the colleges in the state

Updated on: Monday, June 17, 2013

Anna University is expected to release the rank list of all the 521 affiliated engineering colleges in the state on Monday. Last Friday, the Madras High Court, based on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), had directed the university to publish the rank list of all the colleges in the state before June 17, to help students make informed decisions when the counselling commences on June 21.

Based on a PIL filed by the father of an applicant who said that several colleges which do not have facilities and the required approval are misleading students with dubious advertisements, a division bench of Acting Chief Justice R K Agarwal and Justice M Sathianarayanan had directed Anna University last Friday, to publish the rank list of all TN engineering colleges by June 17.

Though the PIL said that the colleges may be ranked based on various aspects, considering the limited time the court had reportedly directed them to release the rank list based on the results. Thus the rank list will be based on the pass percentage of each institution.

The move has been welcomed by both parents and students who feel that this will help them make informed choices. On the other hand many of the tier 2 and 3 colleges are afraid that this will affect their admissions.

"There are no reliable measures to accurately ascertain which the better colleges are. In many cases we fall for what is said in an advertisement or by an agent," says N Sathesh, a teacher at a private school whose daughter wants to join an engineering college. Publishing a rank list of the colleges based on its performance is the best way to judge the quality of an institution, he said.

However, colleges fear this may not be the best way to judge an institution. "Even though the university may consider the results of all eight semesters, there are so many other parameters that need to be considered when judging the quality of an institution," says T D Eswaramoorthy, joint secretary of the Coimbatore Association of Management Colleges Affiliated to Anna University. Factors including infrastructure, faculty, seminars and workshops among other aspects should also be looked into while judging the rank of an institution. If only results are considered, then institutions that focus only on marks will have the upper hand here. Other institutions may also start focusing only on marks at the expense of a wholesome learning experience, he said.

When contacted, Anna University officials said that they are ready with the list, but are waiting to receive the court order. "We will get the order only on Monday. Only after going through the order we can decide on the type of rank list to be published," said a senior official.

Madras HC directs Anna University to publish the rank list of all the colleges in the state

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