The number of closures of engineering colleges in India continues to increase, with 58 engineering and technical colleges closing in the 2025-26 academic year. The shutdown spans multiple states and is led by uttar pradesh The watchdog said this was linked to low student enrollment, teacher shortages and a failure to meet required standards.All India Council for Technical Education (Asia ICT ExhibitionThe country’s technical education regulator has approved a so-called “phased closure” of the institutions. This means they will not be allowed to enroll first-year students during the academic year, but students already registered will be able to complete courses.“A total of 58 engineering and technology colleges are to be phased down during 2025-26. Phased down means that the colleges cannot admit first-year students in the academic year during which phased out is granted. But the existing students will continue to attend classes,” a senior AICTE official said. PTI.
What does progressive shutdown mean?
Unlike a complete shutdown, a progressive shutdown does not immediately shut down the mechanism. Instead, admissions to freshmen will be stopped while students from existing batches will continue to be admitted till graduation.According to AICTE, a complete shutdown is different as classes are completely stopped and affected students are shifted to other institutions.The regulator said the approach was taken to avoid disrupting the education of students already studying for their degrees.
Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra have highest number of closures
The closed institutions are spread across several states, with Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra having the highest number of institutions each with 12 institutions.
| state | University closed |
|---|---|
| uttar pradesh | 12 |
| Maharashtra | 12 |
| madhya pradesh | 8 |
| Telangana | 4 |
| punjab province | 4 |
| andhra pradesh | 3 |
| rajasthan | 3 |
| gujarat | 2 |
| Karnataka | 2 |
| tamil nadu | 2 |
| Haryana | 1 |
| Orissa | 1 |
| Uttarakhand | 1 |
| west bengal | 1 |
According to information shared with universities, out of the 58 institutions, only 3 are government-funded and the rest are privately funded. PTI.
More than 950 courses have also been discontinued
The closure has also affected academic courses offered by technical institutions.“Over 950 courses offered in technical and engineering colleges across the country have also been closed during this period,” AICTE officials said. PTI.The discontinuation of courses has resulted in a continued reduction in the number of courses offered at some institutions, particularly at institutions where enrollment has remained low for several consecutive years.
Why AICTE ordered shutdown
AICTE said institutions may be closed for various reasons, including low student enrollment, inability to maintain the required number of teaching staff and failure to comply with infrastructural and operational requirements.The regulatory body oversees technical education in engineering, architecture, management and pharmacy institutions and is responsible for maintaining academic standards and regulatory approvals.The recent closures illustrate the challenges many institutions continue to face in attracting students and meeting regulatory requirements. While the colleges approved for phased closure will continue to teach existing batches, they will no longer admit new students, thus winding down their operations gradually, PTI Report.
