B Tech institutes: 20 percent meet global standards

Only 800-1000 engineering institutes in India that offer B Tech degrees meet global standards.

The fact was announced during India’s bid to become a permanent member of the elite Washington Accord.

Entry in to the Washington Accord would mean that a B Tech from India would be at the same level as a B Tech from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, UK, the US and eight other countries.

If India were to become a permanent member, students who have done their B Tech in India would find it easier to go abroad for jobs and higher.

There around between 4000-5000 engineering institutes in India. About 140 institutes have applied to be accredited to the Washington Accord.

India has been a provisional member of the Washington Accord since 2007.

Reports state that the there is no fixed timeline for India to be given permanent membership because of the infrastructure at engineering institutes.

India has yet to invite the Washington Accord to audit its system. A member of the Washington Accord was quoted as saying that India’s bid would be “very challenging”.

According to reports, a National Board of Accreditation (NBA) spokesperson said that India may come up with a two-tier accreditation system where certain engineering colleges have international standards while others will opt for slightly lower benchmarks.