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IIT Women-Only Seats Surge 141% Since 2022, But Admission Share Barely Changes
Sentiment: NeutralHigh Priority
What Happened?
The number of women-only supernumerary seats at IITs rose from 1,567 in 2022 to 3,776 in 2026, a 141% increase. However, women's share of total admissions increased only slightly from 20% to 20.22%.
Key points
- Female supernumerary seats increased from 1,567 in 2022 to 3,776 in 2026.
- Women's share of total IIT admissions rose from about 20% to 20.22%.
- Total IIT seat capacity increased from 16,598 in 2022 to 18,826 in 2026.
- The policy to increase female seats was introduced in 2018.
- In 2026, 3,814 women were allotted seats, up from 3,310 in 2022.
Key insights
- The significant increase in women-only seats may encourage more women to apply to IITs.
- Despite more seats, the overall percentage of women in IIT admissions remains stable, indicating systemic issues.
- Future efforts may need to focus on increasing the number of women qualifying for engineering programs.
Why it matters
The increase in women-only seats aims to improve gender representation in IITs, but the marginal rise in admissions highlights ongoing challenges.
Source
India Today
