*Imagine a system so stupid,* it judges a college’s “quality” by number of committees, not by how many students it saves. This isn’t reform. It’s bureaucratic euthanasia,  with a smiling stamp. 2014:  *“Accreditation shall be mandatory.”* Sounds harmless, right? Until you realize that line... murdered hundreds of colleges. This is not a policy. This is a crime scene. *Let me take you there.* A poor college. Rural. No funding. One Principal. 20 overworked staff. One functioning computer. They’re told: “Create an IQAC Cell.” “Create 30 Committees.” “Upload geotagged photos.” “Maintain five years of reports.” *“Apply for NAAC or lose your right to exist.”* They can’t pay electricity bills. They can’t hire faculty. They can’t attend seminars, travel allowance = zero. Yet the system still demands: “*Show NAAC readiness.”* *They fail.* Not because they didn’t try. But because they were never meant to pass. Meanwhile... Just 100 km away. A college owned by a politically  connected businessman  Hires a consultant for ₹25 lakhs. Bribes a few evaluators. Gets an A+ NAAC grade. No real faculty. No real research. But the bank loan? Huge. The building? Fancy. *They’re declared “Centre of Excellence.”* They get funding, autonomy, international tie-ups. *The rich got accredited.* *The poor got penalized.* *The gap became law.* And here’s the plot twist *no one talks about:* A university defines the *syllabus.* But that university isn’t accredited. *Yet the colleges following that unaccredited syllabus are forced to get accredited themselves.* How absurd can we get? So who wrote this horror? A few think tanks. Some foreign advisors. They said: “Global best practices.” Our babus? They nodded. Printed guidelines. Patted each other on the back. “India will rise.” They forgot— *India’s foundation is built on its small colleges,* *not just the IITs.* Now, 11 years later… Just 37% of our universities are accredited. Only 21% of colleges. Only 15% of technical programs. The rest? Silently dying. Or waiting for a miracle. We say education is a right. But if you’re a poor college in India, you’re treated like a criminal for trying to survive. *No money = No accreditation.* *No accreditation = No students.* *No students = No survival.* That’s the trap. And the villain? *Not NAAC.* *Not AICTE.* Not the consultants. It’s the faceless babu. Who cracked an exam at 22, and now signs death warrants for colleges at 52. No field visit.  Just a file. A pen. A stamp. So ask yourself: Why are we rating poor colleges by elite standards? Why does survival now depend on *money*, not merit? When did documentation replace education? When did we start calling this progress? I’m *not here to blame.* I’m *here to bleed.* Because if *we don’t question* this now, there won’t be any real colleges left to accredit. *Wake up.* *Speak up.* *Push back.* This circus must end. *I’ve spoken.* *Now I want to hear from you.* What do you see when you walk into a *“accredited”* college? Let’s talk. #copied from LinkedIn