Technical Education Gains Momentum as Polytechnic Admissions Surge, ITIs See Lukewarm Response

Mumbai: Students in Maharashtra have once again shown a strong preference for technical diploma education after Class 10, with polytechnic institutes witnessing an impressive response in the very first admission round. In contrast, Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) have recorded less than 43% admissions even after completing two rounds of counselling.

According to the latest admission data, 442 polytechnic institutes across the state offer a total of 1,37,627 seats. A total of 1,40,371 students qualified in the final merit list, while 1,21,831 candidates filled their preferences for the first admission round.

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In the first round, 89,631 seats were allotted. Of these, 58,365 students confirmed their admissions, while 19,619 candidates opted for the “betterment” option, taking the overall reporting rate to nearly 87%.

On the other hand, the response to ITI admissions has remained below expectations. Although 1,65,374 students completed the application process by paying the required fees, only 62,076 students secured admission against 1,45,124 available seats, leaving 83,048 seats vacant after two rounds.

In the first ITI admission round, 78,496 students were allotted seats, but only 41,825 confirmed their admissions, resulting in an admission rate of 53.28%. During the second round, 44,680 candidates received allotments, but only 19,787 students completed the admission process, reducing the admission rate to 44.29%. Overall, admissions have reached only 42.77% after two rounds.

Officials believe that students and parents are increasingly opting for polytechnic diploma programmes because they offer direct lateral entry into the second year of engineering degree courses, wider higher education opportunities, scholarships, campus placements, industrial internships, and modern specialisations such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Information Technology (IT), and Automation.

The growing popularity of diploma education has also been supported by the establishment of Centres of Excellence in several polytechnic institutes across Maharashtra, providing industry-oriented and globally competitive technical education.

Meanwhile, education experts have expressed concern over the declining interest in ITIs despite their strong employment potential. They point out that, although the Directorate General of Training (DGT) mandates at least 240 hours of industry-oriented skill training, students often spend considerable time on administrative activities and government programmes, affecting the quality of practical training.

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