Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has extended the deadline for admission to diploma courses in government and private polytechnic colleges till August 31 to improve enrolment for the 2026-27 academic year.

The earlier deadline for direct admissions to polytechnic institutions ended on July 31.

Tamil Nadu has 55 government polytechnic colleges and more than 400 private polytechnic institutions offering diploma programmes.

Government polytechnics have a total intake of 22,600 diploma seats, while private institutions offer around 1.30 lakh seats.

According to official figures, 10,600 seats have so far been filled in government polytechnic colleges, while 22,000 seats have been filled in private institutions.

With a substantial number of seats remaining vacant, the authorities have decided to extend the admission process until August 31 to facilitate enrolment of more eligible students into diploma programmes for the current academic year.