All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE)

AICTE was initially established in November 1945 as an advisory body for promoting development in India in a coordinated and integrated manner. AICTE also conducted surveys on the facilities that were available for technical education. It attained the statutory status in the year 1987 and is a national-level council for technical education.
Some of the highlights of AICTE are mentioned in the table below:

AICTE under the Ministry of Human Resource Development provides proper planning and development of the technical education system in India. It is an important topic for the IAS Exam and is included in the GS-II section of the UPSC Syllabus. Candidates can also download the notes PDF at the end of this article.

Objectives of AICTE

All India Statutory Council For Technical Education (AICTE) attained the statutory status in the year 1987 under the AICTE Act. As per the National Policy of Education (1986), AICTE was established with the following objectives:

1. To plan, formulate and maintain the norms and standards by acting as a statutory authority.
2. To provide quality assurance through accreditation.
3. To monitor, evaluate and provide funding for the priority areas.
4.  Maintaining parity of certification & awards.
5. To manage and develop the technical education system of India.

National Working Group & Its Role

A National Working Group was also constituted by the Government of India under the Ministry of Human Resource Development to look into the role of AICTE for the proliferation of various technical institutions, maintenance of standards, and other related matters. The National Working Group also initiated for providing statutory authority to AICTE  along with restructuring and strengthening it with necessary infrastructure to make it more effective.

Candidates can visit the National Policy on Education (NEP 2020) page and learn more about the revised education policy released by the Union Education Ministry.

What was the AICTE Act, 1987?

The All India Council For Technical Education Act 1987 was implemented for the development of AICTE with an aim to provide proper planning and coordinated development of the technical education system in India. AICTE Act was published by the Ministry of Law & Justice on December 28, 1987, in the Gazette of India Extraordinary Part II under the Section-1 (Number-75).

As mentioned in the AICTE Act of 1987,  the All India Council For Technical Education consists of Chairman, Member Secretary and Vice-Chairman. All three regulatory bodies are appointed by the Central Government of India.  The present Member Secretary and Vice-Chairman of AICTE are Alok Prakash Mittal and M. P. Poonia respectively.

Bureaus under AICTE

The All India Council For Technical Education consists of eight major bureaus, namely: Research, Institutional and Faculty Development Bureau, Planning and Coordination Bureau, Academic Bureau, University Bureau, Administration Bureau, Approval Bureau, Finance Bureau and e-Governance Bureau.

AICTE also comprises 10 Board of Studies that deals with technician, vocational, undergraduate engineering, postgraduate engineering and research, architecture, town and country planning, pharmacy, management, applied arts and crafts, hotel management and catering technology education.

AICTE Schemes and Initiatives

Multiple schemes and programmes have been initiated by the All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE) for the development of education in the country. Discussed below are the same in brief:

1. Student Development Schemes
   • Pragati Scheme to award meritorious girls
   • Saksham Scholarship for Different Abled students
   • Prerna Scheme for SC/ST Students preparing for higher education
   • Smariddhi Scheme for SC/ST students to help them with their startups
2. Faculty Development Schemes
   • National Initiative for Technical Teachers Training (NITTT)
   • Distinguished Visiting Professorship Scheme
3. Institutional Development Schemes
   • AICTE-IDEA (Idea Development, Evaluation & Application) Lab
   • AICTE Scheme for promoting Interest, Creativity and Ethics among Students
   • E- SHODH SINDHU for free access to e-Journals/ e-Resources to AICTE approved Government/ Government-Aided technical institutes
4. Research & Innovation Development schemes
   • Entrepreneurship Development Cell
   • Collaborative Research Scheme (CRS) to provide research grant to young faculty members
5. General Schemes
   • Saansad Aadarsh Gram Yojana for rural development

AICTE (UPSC Notes):- Download PDF Here

AICTE is an important statutory body of India that provides proper planning and development of the technical education system. Candidates preparing for UPSC 2021 should keep a track on the latest developments in the country as they form an important part for the Civil Service Exam.

UPSC aspirants can visit BYJU’S for the latest exam updates, study material, notes and preparation tips and ace the upcoming administrative exams.