New Delhi, Jan. 8: The human resource development ministry is tightening the noose around private technical institutions that are charging substantive fees from students but offering sub-standard education in return.The All India Council of Technical Education, the apex body that decides the registration of these institutions, has laid down fresh guidelines to stem the mushrooming of fake institutions.

There are allegations that the AICTE has been shielding the poor quality institutions despite having received a barrage of complaints against them. The HRD ministry says: ?The ministry is seriously concerned about the present process of giving approval for starting new technical institutions.?

The officials underline the complaints they have received about random introduction of new courses and sudden increase in student intake in certain courses.

?There have been widespread complaints about alleged malpractices, misdemeanour ? about registration of institutions lacking basic physical and human infrastructure,? says the ministry.

The AICTE proposes to include advisers of its malpractice cell in the new restructured committee that will now screen applications. This will ensure that complaints are not hushed up.

The institutions will now have to pass a stringent screening test before they can get accreditation. The HRD ministry wants the process of screening to be as transparent as possible.

At present the council does not cite reasons for disqualifying or accepting an institution. ?But now the AICTE will have to clearly outline the reasons for rejecting or accepting an application to avoid ambiguity. This will also rule out arbitrariness,? says the ministry.

The application forms will stress on the institution?s performance in critical areas. It will have to provide information about the designations, qualifications, mode of recruitment and date of appointment of faculty members to guarantee quality education. The eligibility criteria will also apply to the non-teaching staff in libraries, laboratories and workshops.

The AICTE will monitor the functioning of the institutions. They will have to keep the council informed about the academic performance of their students and the companies that have visited the institution campus in the last five years.

The council will also monitor the use of Internet services and the utilisation of schemes for faculty development and research promotion. The council?s present guidelines are loosely framed which give accountability a go by. The worst sufferers are the students who are never considered seriously for quality jobs.

The new guidelines put in place a committee that will visit the institutions and conduct a thorough survey. Its members will include experts from serving members of universities, deemed universities, government and semi-government institutions.

?Special attention would need to be paid to their profile including integrity,? says the HRD ministry. State governments and affiliating universities will also send their representatives.