Pune: Maharashtra’s higher and technical education department has identified 123 colleges for the 2025-26 academic year that are operating without meeting academic and infrastructure norms mandatory for affiliation and recognition, triggering concerns over the quality of education and academic future of the enrolled students.The department said the institutes lacked qualified teachers, adequate enrolment, laboratories and libraries. The findings have raised questions over the state’s regulatory oversight and highlighted a larger contradiction in higher education, wherein colleges function despite shrinking enrolment and widespread faculty shortages putting the future of students at stake.The department lists the highest number of such colleges in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division at 81, followed by 20 in Amravati, 12 in Nagpur, five in Nashik, three in Pune and two in the Konkan divisions.The issue came to light after higher and technical education minister Chandrakant Patil furnished the details in a written reply to a question raised by BJP MLC Niranjan Davkhare during the ongoing monsoon session of the state legislature.Davkhare questioned how colleges failing to fulfil requirements were granted or allowed to retain university affiliation. The MLC sought details of the mechanism used to verify compliance before granting or renewing recognition.According to the department, the identified colleges had failed to meet basic requirements — including minimum student strength, availability of qualified faculty and essential academic infrastructure, such as laboratories and libraries.Patil said, “Action has been initiated under the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016. Under section 117, universities are empowered to inspect colleges and submit compliance reports, while section 120 provides for withdrawal of affiliation and recognition from institutes that fail to meet the prescribed standards.”Educationist Neil Date said, “The disclosure comes at a time when Maharashtra’s higher education sector is already grappling with declining admissions. Over 14 lakh undergraduate seats remain open across the state this academic year, while 4,584 assistant professor posts are vacant in universities and aided colleges as per the latest national survey.”Educationists said allowing substandard colleges to operate despite falling demand and faculty shortages points to serious gaps in higher education planning and regulation.The findings have also created uncertainty for students in these colleges.Meanwhile, principal of a city college Shyam Bhandari said, “The govt may have initiated action against the institutes, but it remains unclear whether students will be accommodated in recognised colleges if affiliation is withdrawn and how their academic interests will be protected.”
