Shortage of higher secondary seats leaves students in Malappuram high and dry

Malappuram: The shortage of higher secondary seats in the district has once again come to the fore with students who passed Class 10 with a full A+ finding it difficult to get admission to the courses and schools of their choice.

Education sector experts point out that the state government must allocate 229 extra batches to accommodate all the students qualified for higher studies from Malappuram. Though various organisations have raised concerns over the issue, there seems to be no solution for the current crisis.

In Malappuram district, 79,730 students have qualified for the Plus One admission from the state stream, but there are only 60,060 seats in the higher secondary and 4,800 seats in polytechnic, ITI and VHSE. At present, the shortage is nearly 15,000 seats. But the would grow further when the CBSE and ICSE results are out. Though the government has already declared a 30 per cent seat increase in government schools and a 20 per cent increase in aided schools, many point out that this would not help bridge the gap.

“We do not know why the government is not serious about solving the crisis. They have to do whatever is necessary to solve it. IUML would go ahead with protest as we need a permanent solution in this matter," IUML national general secretary PK Kunhalikutty said.

Various organisations have said that they would intensify the protest till the government takes concrete steps to solve the issue. Samastha Kerala Sunni Students Federation staged a night march in Malappuram on May 10 raising students' concerns.

"We have been conducting protests every year in this matter. The seat shortage is affecting hundreds of students in the district. We are planning different kinds of protests on the issue this year and we demand a proper solution to end the crisis," Thashreef K P, the state general secretary of Fraternity Movement said.

They point out that increasing the number of students in each batch is not a permanent solution to the crisis. Currently, most schools in the district accommodate 65 students in a class, compared to 50 students in the southern district. The shortage has resulted in students waiting in the queue till the last phase of allotment to get Plus One admission in the district despite securing A+ in all subjects.