VTU Moves Saturday Engineering Classes Online to Conserve Fuel and Reduce Traffic
Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) has announced that Saturday classes for engineering colleges under its jurisdiction will transition to online mode immediately. The decision, aimed at supporting a national fuel conservation initiative and reducing traffic congestion, was detailed in a university circular issued in Bengaluru on June 13.
The new policy means that students will no longer need to travel to their campuses for Saturday classes. Engineering colleges under VTU typically hold classes on the second, fourth, and fifth Saturdays of the month, while the first and third Saturdays are designated as holidays.
According to VTU Vice-Chancellor S Vidyashankar, the decision was made as part of broader national austerity measures. Vidyashankar noted that the university has lakhs of students, and halting their Saturday commute will help conserve fuel, reduce traffic congestion, and abate air pollution.
The proposal was discussed and unanimously approved during a recent meeting of the university's executive committee. The change will apply to all 220 engineering colleges under VTU’s jurisdiction, which collectively cover nearly 3 lakh students. This mandate affects constituent, affiliated, and autonomous colleges, schools of architecture, and university departments.
Under the new system, only theory classes will be conducted online on Saturdays. Practical classes will continue to be held offline on the remaining weekdays. While students will attend classes from home, teachers are still required to conduct the online sessions from their respective campuses. The university has not yet taken a decision regarding whether non-teaching staff must report to college on Saturdays.
Vidyashankar explained that the University Grants Commission (UGC) permits a blended learning format at a 60:40 ratio of offline to online classes. Since VTU is transitioning to online classes only twice a month, the system remains well within the permitted national guidelines.
