Admissions to 205 self-financed BEd colleges in Bengal have been blocked for the 2026-28 academic session after inspections found that the institutions had not met prescribed infrastructure standards, higher education minister Jagannath Chattopadhyay said on Thursday.
The colleges were denied admission after failing to comply with requirements even after receiving show-cause notices, the minister said. November 4 was the final date for admission to the two-year BEd programme for the session. The institutions have not been de-affiliated, however, and may be allowed to admit students in the next academic session if they improve their facilities.
The action follows a broader review of private teacher-training colleges in the state. In August, the higher education department permitted admissions in 150 of Bengal’s 601 private BEd colleges. Admissions at the remaining 451 institutions had been placed on hold after they were issued show-cause notices over infrastructure shortfalls.
According to Chattopadhyay, 442 of those colleges submitted undertakings stating that they had complied with the required standards and appealed for permission to admit students. The remaining nine did not submit representations. Department inspectors subsequently found that 205 colleges still did not meet the norms and recommended that they be prevented from admitting students for the current academic year.
The compliance process is linked to annual affiliation renewal by Baba Saheb Ambedkar Education University, which affiliates government and self-financed BEd colleges in the state. Institutions are required to submit information on teaching staff, academic areas, curriculum laboratories, science laboratories, resource centres, workshop space, fire licences and other credentials.
The infrastructure rules are based on regulations of the National Council for Teacher Education. Under the new guidelines, every BEd institution must have at least eight full-time teachers, including the principal. For a batch of 50 students, the requirements include a minimum of 3,000 square metres of built-up space, at least one laboratory and one library.
The standards increase sharply when enrolment rises above 50 students. An institution admitting between 51 and 100 students must have 16 full-time teachers, 6,000 square metres of built-up area, at least two laboratories and two libraries. The revised requirements follow the increase in the BEd course duration from one year to two years.
The education department official cited by the minister said the 205 private BEd colleges had been unable to develop the infrastructure required under the NCTE norms despite the show-cause process. The restrictions therefore link the right to admit students directly to the physical capacity and staffing of the institutions.
The decision also places the annual affiliation process at the centre of oversight for teacher-training colleges. While the affected institutions retain their affiliations for now, they cannot enrol students during the current session. Their next opportunity to resume admissions will depend on improving infrastructure and meeting the prescribed standards.
