Kollam: Seeking to stem the exodus of students to other states, the Kerala government has initiated discussions on a major overhaul of engineering admissions, including the possibility of scrapping the Kerala Engineering, Architecture and Medical (KEAM) entrance examination.

The proposed changes are part of a wider effort to revive the state's engineering education sector, which has been hit by declining enrolment, thousands of vacant seats and the closure of several engineering colleges over the past decade.

Dr Achuthsankar S Nair, vice chairman of the Kerala State Higher Education Council, has been entrusted with steering the consultations and examining alternative admission models. A committee will be constituted to study the available options and submit its recommendations, he said.

The exercise follows an announcement in the state budget promising sweeping reforms in the higher education sector. Higher Education Minister Roji M. John has directed that the proposed reforms be finalised before the next academic year.

The proposal to abolish the engineering entrance examination also found support at a preliminary consultation attended by representatives of engineering colleges and experts from the higher education sector. According to estimates, around 20 to 25 per cent of students from Kerala leave the state to pursue engineering education elsewhere, with most enrolling in colleges in Tamil Nadu, where admissions are not based on an entrance examination.

This outflow of students has coincided with a steady decline in admissions to engineering colleges in Kerala. Nearly 20,000 engineering seats remain vacant across the state, while around 20 engineering colleges have closed over the past decade. Stakeholders argue that the entrance examination is also a key barrier discouraging students from other states from seeking admission to engineering colleges in Kerala.

Elaborating on the proposed review, Dr Achuthsankar said the Kerala State Higher Education Council would soon constitute a commission to examine the relevance of KEAM and recommend alternative admission mechanisms.

"Among the options to be examined are scrapping the entrance examination altogether, retaining it only for premier institutions with a long-standing record of academic excellence, and using Plus Two marks as the merit criterion for admissions to the remaining engineering seats without completely doing away with the entrance test," he said.