The higher education department has asked government-aided colleges and unitary universities to reopen the online portal for undergraduate admissions “if required”, because “a good number of seats are lying vacant”.
A notice issued by Manish Jain, principal secretary of the department on Thursday evening, says: “Online standalone portal may be reopened with effect from September 12 to September 16 for the undergraduate courses in general degree colleges and unitary universities, if required, for receiving fresh applications, where the seats are lying vacant.”
The UG admission process may continue till September 28 to fill the vacant seats, the notice says.
In the previous schedule, the department had asked the institutes to keep the online portal open from July 18 till August 5.
After the publication of merit lists by August 16, the institutes were asked to start classes of the first semester from September 19.
“Since vacancy is being reported before the start of the class, the portal is being reopened,” said an official of the department. A college principal said seats have been falling vacant since the state joint entrance examination board started registering students on August 26 for admission to BTech and pharmacy courses. “The reopening of the admission portal will help fill the seats...,” said Joydeep Sarangi, principal of New Alipore College.
Another principal said the problem of vacancy would remain because counselling for admission to the MBBS course was going to start soon following the publication of the National Entrance cum Eligibility Test (NEET) on Thursday evening.
“The department should have waited for the completion of NEET counselling before reopening the portal,” he said.
Arrested for murder
An alleged drug addict was arrested on Thursday in Cooch Behar on the charge of murdering a youth.
Police said on Wednesday that Subhendu Debnath, a resident of Ramkrishnapally in Cooch Behar, filed a complaint stating Sampad Sarkar, a neighbour, had on Tuesday gone to his house and left with his son Arindam, 20.
Arindam had not returned home since.
“He alleged that Sampad abducted his son. On Thursday, Arindam’s body was recovered from a bush at Tapsikhata in Alipurduar,” said an officer.
The police said Sampad was a drug addict.
He has been arrested.
