PUCA urges AICTE to extend Punjab colleges’ admission deadline

Srinagar, Aug 08: The Punjab Unaided Colleges Association (PUCA) has urged the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to extend the last date of admissions for the 2025-26 academic session from 14 August to 15 September 2025.According to a statement issued here, PUCA President and Chairman of Aryans Group of Colleges, Rajpura (near Chandigarh), Dr. Anshu Kataria, said that multiple factors this year have created serious challenges for both students and institutions. These include delays in 10+2 and several university final results due to recent floods and natural calamities, prolonged CUET and NEET counselling schedules, and the late admission timelines followed by UGC-affiliated universities.Representatives cautioned that the current deadline could hinder national skill development goals, particularly for high-demand programmes such as Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, and Health Informatics. The association has appealed to AICTE to respect the administrative autonomy of universities and colleges and to urgently extend the admission deadline to 15 September, ensuring that deserving students are not deprived of access to quality technical education.