38% seats lie vacant in Trichy region govt arts colleges

Trichy: Nearly 38% of seats remain vacant in government arts and science colleges across the Trichy region, with academicians attributing the trend to outdated course offerings, shifting student preferences and delays in the admission process.According to official data, 8,876 students were admitted against 14,300 sanctioned seats in 21 government arts and science colleges across Trichy, Pudukkottai, Karur and Perambalur districts, leaving 5,424 seats vacant.In Trichy district alone, 3,176 students secured admission against 5,190 sanctioned seats, bringing the admission rate down to 61% from 79% last year. Vacancies were higher in rural colleges, while institutions in cities and town centres fared relatively better.

For instance, the Government Arts and Science College in Aranthangi admitted only 248 students against 710 sanctioned seats, while the Government Arts and Science College in Lalgudi has filled only 198 of its 545 seats.Academicians said government colleges have struggled to keep pace with changing student preferences by failing to introduce new-age courses. While private and aided colleges have also seen declining interest in traditional disciplines, many have responded by offering programmes such as artificial intelligence and machine learning.

“Ever since the pandemic, preference for basic science courses has taken a hit, while demand for computer science and commerce has remained strong,” said the head of the physics department at a college.Experts warned that the falling enrolment in basic science courses could have long-term implications for research.“A few colleges have not received a single admission to basic science courses this year because many students perceive them as difficult.

In some cases, where only a handful of students enrol, they are encouraged to shift to arts courses as it is not feasible to allot faculty for such small batches. We have been visiting schools and conducting astronomy sessions to motivate students to take up mathematics and science.

Unless this issue is addressed at the school level, the number of students pursuing research will decline sharply over the next decade,” said Manoharan, general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Astronomy and Science Society.Meanwhile, the Association of University Teachers (AUT) urged the state government to streamline the admission process, arguing that delays in counselling have put government colleges at a disadvantage.“While government, aided and self-financing colleges follow the same admission guidelines, only government colleges adhere to a rigid admission schedule, delaying counselling and admissions. By the time the first phase of counselling in government colleges concluded on June 18, most private and aided colleges had already filled their seats and commenced first-year classes.

If the admission guidelines are common to all three categories of colleges, there is no reason for such a glaring disparity in the admission process,” said K Pandiyan, former AUT president.Higher education department officials said the number of vacant seats is expected to come down after all rounds of counselling are completed.Vacancy CrisisGovernment Arts & Science CollegesNo. of collegesTrichy district: 7Trichy region: 21Trichy district2025-262026-27Sanctioned seats5,1905,190Students admitted4,1143,176Vacant seats1,076 (21%)2,014 (39%)Trichy region (2026-27)Sanctioned seats: 14,300Students admitted: 8,876Vacant seats: 5,424 (38%)Why are seats going vacant?Declining interest in basic science coursesStudents opting for AI, ML, Computer Science and CommerceSlow introduction of new-age courses in government collegesDelayed admission process compared with private and aided collegesSharper decline in enrolment in rural collegesSource: Higher Education DepartmentRural colleges witnessing sharper decline