Arvind Kejriwal seeks amendments in Delhi University Act to establish new colleges

NEW DELHI: Expressing concerns over higher cut-offs for admission in Delhi University colleges, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said he has written to Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank seeking amendments in the DU Act so that more colleges and universities can be established in the city. Addressing an online media briefing, Kejriwal said that there is a need to open more colleges and universities in Delhi to provide higher education opportunities to students.
"Around 2.5 lakh students in Delhi pass class 12 board exams every year and of them, only 1.25 lakh get admission in city colleges," Kejriwal said.

He said that there are 91 colleges and institutes affiliated to Delhi University, while IP University, which offers professional degrees, has 127 colleges and institutes.

He said that under Section 5(2) of the DU Act, new colleges established in the city will have to be affiliated to Delhi University.

In the last 30 years, DU has not given affiliation to any new college, Kejriwal claimed, adding that it may be due to its full capacity.

Kejriwal said he has requested the Union Education Minister for amending Section 5(2) of the DU Act so that more colleges and universities can be established in the city.

Earlier this week, Delhi University had announced its first cut-off list for undergraduate admission with Lady Shri Ram College pegging the aggregate score at 100 per cent for three Honours courses.

The 100 per cent cut-off for undergraduate admissions in Delhi University comes after a gap of five years.