Odisha tech college owners seek help

Cuttack, Aug. 14: Odisha Private Engineering College Association (OPECA) has sought intervention of the Odisha government to conduct Special Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) for engineering course “to save technical education in the state from doom”.

“Admission in technical colleges were the lowest this year compared to last four years as more than 75 per cent seats are lying vacant,” OPECA said in its statement while submitting a “proposal for survival of technical education in the state” to the technical education minister Sanjay Das Burma.

In its proposal, OPECA has accused the Odisha Joint Entrance Examination (OJEE) Committee of misleading the Supreme Court in its special leave petition on August 4 to get stay on Orissa High Court order that had directed the state government to hold a Special OJEE for engineering courses for 2014-15 in view of huge vacancies.

On OPECA’s petition, the high court on August 1 passed the order to hold Special OJEE for BTech courses and second OJEE for MCA and MBA courses and complete the procedure by August 15.

The state government had accepted the high court order and advised the OJEE to take forward the process.

Subsequently, on August 2 advertisement was published in newspapers for conduct of Special OJEE-2014 and second OJEE-2014 on August 3. The website of OJEE-2014 – www.ojee.nic.in – was activated for registration of applications from August 3 to August 7. Till August 7, about 5,000 students had applied for the Special OJEE and second OJEE.

“But the OJEE committee suppressed all these facts before the Supreme Court and number of applications received till August 7 and obtained the stay on the high court order,” the OPECA has stated. OPECA secretary Binod Dash told The Telegraph today: “In our proposal we have requested the technical education minister to advice chairman OJEE and secretary, technical education, to place before the Supreme Court that OJEE Committee can conduct the Special Examination and Second JEE for approximately 5,000 students (who have already applied online for the examination based on OJEE Advertisement)”.

“If the state government doesn’t act on our proposal, we will appeal in the Supreme Court,” Dash said.

According to OPECA, the total intake capacity of engineering colleges in the state is 51,121. Of these, 45,170 seats are in private engineering colleges. This year 11,200 seats were filled up through first round counselling. Consequently, more than 39,000 seats are still vacant.