NIT Jalandhar Mining Engineering students have a bleak future

New Delhi: On May 26, 2015, the Board of Governors (BoG) of National Institute of Technology (NIT), Jalandhar decided that it will discontinue the B.Tech programmes of Mining Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology from the academic year 2015-16. It will not admit any fresh students in these three courses from this year but will continue to conduct the course for students that have already been admitted to these courses.
According to the BOG, students in first and second year of these courses (admitted in 2013 and 2014) were given option to migrate to other branches running at the student but many of them were interested in continuing in their existing programmes. Hence, the courses will be continued for the two batches.

Situations are easier for IT and EE students as much of their curriculum is common with other courses being offered at the institute such as Computer Science Engineering, Electronics & Communication Engineering, and Instrumentation & Control Engineering. But Mining Engineering students are out of luck on this point as they follow a unique course curriculum.

Many students in second year of Mining Engineering are doubtful about changing their course as it will cost them 2 years worth of studies but most of the first year students are desperate for migration to other available choices. They are wary of continuing with a course for which there is no lab, no proper faculty, no books in the library and no department at NIT Jalandhar.

“Even if we do complete our course from NIT Jalandhar somehow, which mining company will hire us?”, ask Mining Engineering students.