Starting next year, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) will close down technical colleges which haven’t filled more than 30 per cent of the total seats over the last five years, Chairman Anil Sahasrabuddhe said on Friday.

There were 37 lakh seats available last year across all 10,063 AICTE-approved institutions offering technical courses in management, architecture, engineering, hotel management and pharmacy, among others. Of these only 19 lakh seats found takers, which roughly translates to 48 per cent vacancy.

The problem is most acute in engineering colleges. Last year, only 15 lakh of the total 29 lakh seats were taken.