The first round of undergraduate admissions through the Central Admission Portal (CAP) has recorded a substantially higher seat occupancy rate compared to the same stage last year. Admission statistics show that approximately 81.6% of the seats allotted during the initial round have already been accepted, resulting in a considerably lower number of vacant seats.

Since the portal opened, nearly 24.6 lakh applications have been submitted by around 4.5 lakh candidates seeking admission to 7,232 undergraduate programmes. More than 9 lakh seats are available across 459 colleges participating in the CAP system, although only about 3.8 lakh seats were offered during the first allotment cycle.

Of the seats allotted in the first round, roughly 3.1 lakh students completed the admission process, leaving around 70,000 seats unfilled. This marks a notable improvement over the previous year, when close to 2 lakh seats remained vacant after the corresponding round.

Officials associated with the admission process have linked the stronger performance to the timely commencement of admissions. Last year's schedule experienced a significant delay, reportedly due to legal proceedings involving the OBC reservation list. The uncertainty surrounding the timeline encouraged many students to pursue admissions through alternative channels instead of waiting for the CAP process to begin.

This year, however, the admission portal was launched within a week of the announcement of the state board Class 12 Higher Secondary examination results. The early start appears to have contributed to greater student participation and faster confirmation of allotted seats.

Education department representatives expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the first phase and remain optimistic that additional vacancies will be filled during the upcoming upgrade round. A second admission round is also expected to follow after the completion of the current stages.

Despite the positive trend, college administrators have pointed out concerns regarding admissions across different academic streams. While general degree programmes attracted strong demand, enrolment in several basic science courses remained comparatively weak, raising questions about whether later rounds will significantly improve occupancy levels in those subjects.

Some principals also cautioned that initial admissions may not necessarily translate into long-term enrolment. A number of high-scoring students have accepted seats during the early admission phase, but some may eventually leave if they secure admission to preferred institutions or specialised programmes elsewhere. Such movement could lead to fresh vacancies later in the academic cycle.

Academic leaders have suggested that addressing recurring admission challenges requires broader reforms, including curriculum modernisation and stronger career-oriented opportunities. They believe these measures would improve student retention and reduce the annual issue of seat attrition across institutions.

The Higher Education Department is scheduled to release institute-wise and course-wise vacancy details for the upgrade round on June 20. Admissions under this phase will be conducted between June 20 and June 23.