86% seats of B Planning course in Guj go vacant

The Bachelor of Planning (B Planning) course, offered by five institutes across the state, has failed to evoke much response from students. As per fresh details emerging from the latest development at Admissions Committee for Professional Courses (ACPC), of the 260 B Planning seats offered by various institutes across Gujarat, 220 are to be filled through ACPC and of those 220, only 34 have been filled so far. While the response from the entire state looks gloomy, Nirma University has emerged to be the most preferred institute.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) had last year asked universities and colleges across the country to start a course on urban planning after PM Narendra Modi unveiled the roadmap to develop 500 cities under the Smart Cities Mission project.

Confirming the same, member secretary of ACPC GP Vadodaria said, “Like last year, very few have opted for the course this year and in fact, the numbers have dipped even further.”

When DNA asked him for the reason behind the lack of interest in students, Vadodaria said, “This is a specialised area and not a renowned one. Of the 34 seats, 32 have been filled at Nirma because of the brand and location. One seat each has been filled at Anant Institute of Architecture and Bhagwan Mahavir College of Architecture.”

This year, 50% of admissions are being done by ACPC, whereas the remaining 50% (open for all India) are being conducted by the institutes. Interestingly, in 2013, CEPT had received about 800 applications for 40 seats.