Decline in Undergraduate Admissions

The total number of student registrations in 2025 saw a sharp decline compared to the previous year 2024 in undergraduate admissions in West Bengal. The Government has launched a centralized admission portal (CAP); which has recorded a mere 3.59 lakh in the current year, which is substantially less than 5.3 lakh of the previous year. Mamata Banerjee and her education department can’t shrug off their responsibilities for such a dismal admission.

Delay in Admission affects Undergraduate Admissions

Factors that contributed to the decline included a significant delay in opening the application process and also the delayed merit list publication and admission due to an unresolved court matter regarding OBC quotas.  But such a delay caused many students to seek admission elsewhere, including private colleges and institutions outside West Bengal.

When Students seeks admission in NIT of other states leaving the elite Jadavpur, the situation becomes pathetic. If we allow such a brain drain, our state will become a barren land. We must know the meritorious students only get chances in Jadavpur. Notably, Jadavpur University ranks very high in the all India ranking, NIRF. It’s also heartbreaking when a poor village parent has to sell their belongings to admit their child to a private university. Unfortunately, West Bengal remained a silent spectator of such unwanted events. In fact, the entire education system has come under the microscopic lenses of the critics.

Subsequently,  an incremental curve of drop-out rates has made the situation worse. Notably, a major chunk of enrolled candidates in BA General or the present BA Multidisciplinary courses to get the freebies like Kanyashree and other Government freebies. They drop their studies after the end of the first year.

Corelated factors

Other corelated factors  also contributes to the gradual decline in the undergraduate admissions in the recent years.  It’s ironically true that the Government recruitment process like SSC has come almost to a halt in the recent years. No new big industry has shown its face in West Bengal since the tragic sudden death of the TATA Nano project in Singur.

The current regime has got such stringent land policies and the dominating syndicate system in every sphere have made the industrialists panicky. It’s reported in the parliament that 6000 industries have been shifted from West Bengal or closed down their operations.  Moreover, the allegations of nepotism and illegal passage money have come into the surface in various recruitment process.

The glorious Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) happens every year raising hopes, but leaves us at despair.  The cancellation of the entire recruitment panel of 2016 panels of SSC have created a churning in the society.

The apex court has termed the entire process to be vitiated and alleged of institutional corruption.

Reports reveal that the pending primary education board recruitment might come up with further devastating news. Mamata Bandyopadhyay led TMC Government is seemingly more interested in festivals, celebrations and Carnivals. Mamata Banerjee has granted a special aid to the clubs and pooja committees.

Mass Migration and Brain Drain

Such scams and lack of industrialization have narrowed down the scope for employment for the graduate or master degree holders. Notably, a large number of educated and non-educated youths are to migrate by Southern-bound or Delhi-bound trains almost on a daily basis. They hail from villages of Cooch Behar, Dinajpur, Malda, Midnapore, South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, Murshidabad and other districts.

The higher educated people get decent perks in prestigious jobs through their merit and the less educated people find them in daily labours, even which empower them with handsome amount of earning.  That’s why, the new Shramshree Scheme 2025 of Mamata Banerjee failed to generate any tangible response.

Conclusion: Decline in Undergraduate Admissions

The state is facing a critical demographic and economic challenge. The analysis concludes that unless the government initiates a revolutionary change in its industrialization policy, the brain drain will continue, leading to a state where the productive, young population has emigrated.