A significant number of Pre-University (PU) colleges in Dakshina Kannada are facing an existential crisis, with nearly two dozen institutions reporting a complete absence of new students for the current academic year. This alarming trend highlights deepening issues within the district's educational landscape.
The Scale of the Problem
Out of the total 235 PU colleges registered in Dakshina Kannada, 23 institutions have reported zero admissions this year. Officials confirm that these colleges continue to exist only on official records but have ceased actual operations. According to Rajeshwari, the Deputy Director of Pre-University Education (DDPU) for Dakshina Kannada, the district currently has 212 PU colleges in operation, which include government, aided, and unaided institutions.
The situation is particularly dire for unaided private colleges, which are struggling to sustain themselves due to poor student enrolment and ever-increasing maintenance costs. The district has already witnessed the closure of 15 unaided PU colleges in recent years, and two more have recently submitted formal requests to shut down.
Why Are Colleges Failing?
An official from the PU department provided insight into the downward spiral these institutions face. He explained that many colleges started at a time when student numbers and finances were manageable. However, a sustained reduction in admissions has created a financial deadlock.
Private colleges rely on student fees to pay salaries for teaching and non-teaching staff and cover other recurring costs. When admissions fall, the financial inflow dries up, directly impacting the quality of education. This drop in quality further deters new students, creating a vicious cycle from which recovery becomes nearly impossible. Eventually, the management decides to stop admitting new students altogether.
The official also clarified the formal process, stating, "In order to get the college closed down officially, its management has to apply to the department requesting a shutdown. Only after the department clears the closure is it considered official." This explains why the 23 colleges, though non-functional, remain on paper.
A Glimpse into a Struggling College
The human impact of this trend is evident in individual cases. One PU college operating near Gurupura, which started just four years ago, is now planning to halt admissions from the next academic year. Sources from the college revealed that they managed to secure admissions for the first two years but have seen a complete stop since. This year, they did not admit a single student for the I PU course, signaling an imminent closure.
This story is not an isolated one. The PU department official warned that the majority of unaided colleges face this issue, and many more are in line for a similar fate, indicating that the crisis in Dakshina Kannada's PU education sector is far from over.
