Government nod to 121 new colleges in state

Mumbai: The state government has approved 121 new colleges in Maharashtra, including 22 educational institutes affiliated with the University of Mumbai (MU). The majority of the new institutes, which could open as early as the upcoming academic year 2023-24, are traditional Arts-Science-Commerce colleges.

The state issued Letters of Intent (LOIs) on Saturday with the publishing of government resolution (GR), the first step in establishing the institutes. “If the colleges meet the requirements before the new academic year, they will be able to begin admitting students in 2023-24,” states the GR.

To receive final approval, the educational societies that proposed these colleges must now meet a variety of infrastructure and academic requirements.

The state government has also approved the establishment of 21 law colleges, 11 of which will be affiliated with MU. In addition, 14 design institutes affiliated with the Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey (SNDT) Women’s University, as well as one fashion design institute affiliated with Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), have been given the green light.

Most colleges, 30, will be established under SNDT University throughout the state. One of these institutes, a design college, has been approved for establishment in Shahpur, Thane.

While MU proposed 28 new colleges, the state approved 22 of them. While half of it will be regular Arts-Science-Commerce colleges, the other half will be law schools. Nine colleges – four regular and five law – will be established in Thane, while four regular and two law colleges will be established in Mumbai.

The majority of law colleges are expected to offer three-year LLB programmes, with some offering five-year integrated law programmes. The new colleges will add to the size of MU, which already has approximately 860 affiliated colleges, including more than 70 law colleges.