In the wake of escalating criticism over the Gujarat Common Admission System (GCAS), the state education department has set up an expanded advisory committee tasked with reassessing how the centralised admission process is being managed. The move comes even as pressure from students, teachers, college administrators, and several university heads to dismantle the GCAS continues to grow.
The newly reconstituted panel includes seven appointed members and five invited members, bringing in senior academicians and officials to review the system. Among those selected are Saurashtra University Vice-Chancellor Utpal Joshi, Veer Narmad South Gujarat University Vice-Chancellor Kishore Chavda, RR Lalan College Head of Department Manoj Chhaya, and RK Parikh Arts and Science College principal Vimal Joshi.
The department has once again invited ABVP’s Dhrumil Akhani as a student representative, but notably, no other student organisation has been given a seat at the table. This has resulted in widespread criticism from various quarters.
The committee’s mandate is to identify gaps in the GCAS framework and recommend measures to ensure a smoother, more student-friendly admission cycle for the upcoming academic year. Officials say the body will examine recurring complaints and explore ways to eliminate the technical and procedural glitches that have plagued the platform since its rollout.
GCAS was launched to streamline admissions to undergraduate programmes in grant-in-aid arts, commerce, and science colleges affiliated with universities across the state. Instead, it triggered widespread dissatisfaction last year when the system stretched to over 32 admission rounds, yet colleges still saw sharply reduced enrolments compared to previous years. Students reported being pushed from round to round with no clarity, while many high-scoring applicants were inexplicably denied seats.
Repeated warnings from teacher associations, university officials, and student groups have highlighted the strain placed on both institutions and applicants. Several vice-chancellors have publicly argued that admissions should return to the universities, which previously managed the process independently and with fewer disruptions.
Despite these demands, the state government has opted to retain GCAS and attempt course correction through the advisory committee. Whether the revamped panel can restore confidence in a system that has struggled since inception remains to be seen, but stakeholders across the education sector are watching closely as the review process begins.
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