The College of Agricultural Engineering was established in 1964 as part of the Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana. The college has excellent training facilities in the field of undergraduate and postgraduate education. Because of the high quality of training imparted by the college, a large number of the alumni now holds prestigious positions in national and international organisations.

During the last three decades of its existence, the college has developed several new technologies for the benefit of farmers. It has played a leading role in solving their problems by undertaking problem-oriented research and speedy transfer of technology.

Interested candidates should obtain the application form and prospectus from the College of Agricultural Engineering, Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana-141004, by paying Rs 550.

Those who want the form by post should send a demand draft for Rs 600 in favour of the registrar, PTU, payable at Jalandhar. The sale of brochures starts in the first week of May, while the last date for submitting the forms is at the end of the month.

Eligibility

Candidates who have completed Plus Two or equivalent with physics and mathematics as the main subjects and one of the following — chemistry, biology, biotechnology and computer science — as optional, can apply. Those who have a diploma in engineering trade from the Punjab State Board of Technical Education, Chandigarh, or a diploma / certificate from the Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Longowal, or any recognised state board of technical education are also eligible. However, admission is open only to Punjabi candidates.

Entrance exam

A combined entrance test (CET) is conducted by the Punjab Technical University every year for admission to engineering courses. It is generally held in the month of June.

Pattern of exam

CET has four parts or sessions. Session I, II and III contain objective-type questions from physics, chemistry and mathematics as well as short answer questions and numerical problems. Session IV is the test for proficiency in the Punjabi language, to be taken by those candidates who are Punjabis settled in other states.

How to prepare

For the section on mathematics, candidates may prepare from books such as Quantitative Aptitude by Abhijit Guha, Mathematics by S.L. Loni, Objective Question Bank (Mathematics) by R.K. Gupta and J.P. Arya, and Mathematics by Tata McGraw Hill publishers.

Some of the books applicants can refer to for the section on physics are those by I.E. Irodov, H.C. Verma and N.N. Ghosh as well as publications by Bharti Bhawan. For chemistry, aspirants could prepare from books by O.P. Agarwal, Krishna, Arihant, Ratan and Dinesh publications.

Regular practice will give candidates the necessary speed and accuracy.