The education department has asked state universities, mostly open ones, to increase enrolment rate by launching more courses and opening up study centres, especially in rural areas.

The state's gross enrolment rate in higher education is 13 per cent against the national average of 23.6 per cent.

As the eight main universities in the state face acute shortage of teachers with 5,600 vacant posts against the sanctioned 12,400, the education department has decided to rope in the services of open universities to enrol students in rural areas.

A senior education department official said on condition of anonymity: "As there is a severe shortage of teachers at state universities and even the ongoing teachers' recruitment process at universities is unlikely to be completed before the next academic session, the education department has decided to engage universities offering distant learning to increase the enrolment rate of students."

Nalanda Open University (NOU) and Maulana Mazharul Haque Arabic & Persian University (MMHAPU) have been asked to open study centres in rural areas. The universities have even started the process. Nalanda Open University (NOU) is the state's biggest university in terms of students enrolled in the 119 courses it offers. Its vice-chancellor Rash Bihari Prasad Singh said: "The university has decided to open 66 new study centres, mostly in rural areas. These will be opened up either in state government high school buildings or in constituent college buildings." NOU, which is a distance-learning university, will offer its 119 courses at these study centres, even providing study material. At regular intervals, the university will carry out counselling classes for students and conduct exams.

The Maulana Mazharul Haque Arabic & Persian University (MMHAPU) too has decided to set up study centres. Its vice-chancellor Ejaz Ali Arshad said: "Apart from running its regular language course, the university will run three courses - Bachelor of Library and Information sciences (BLIS), BCA and BBA - at its study centres."

The university administration has decided to set up 100 study centres, mostly in rural areas. These will be run in self-finance mode. A local agency running the centre will arrange faculty and non-teaching staff, while the students completing studies from such centres will get university degrees.

Sources said a reason behind poor enrolment in higher education is that half of the administrative blocks in the states have no colleges. In 240 out of 534 blocks in the state there are neither constituent nor degree colleges, meaning a large section of people are denied higher education. On an average, if a block has 1.5 lakh people, then around 3.6 crore people, against 10.4 crore in the state, have no access to higher education. Smaller districts such as Sheohar have no colleges.