Of the 300 students who have been selected for the teachers' training course at the District Institute of Educational Training (DIET) here, 35 have degrees in B.Tech, three in B.Pharma, two are Biotech graduates, while one has a degree to practice dentistry.

Ishtiyak Ahmed, Principal of DIET, told reporters that about 40,000 students had applied this year for the 350 seats available at the institute for the course. "Though the minimum qualification was a simple graduation, several applicants with degrees such as B.Tech, B.Pharma and BDS turned up," he said.

"Usually the applicants have qualifications such as B.Com and B.A. and most of them are women. But this time, perhaps owing to unemployment, both male and female students with higher qualifications have applied for the course," he said. Ahmed said overqualified applicants might have thought that they would get a guaranteed government job in a primary school with a starting salary of Rs 18,000 per month.

When an applicant, who declined to reveal his name, was asked why he wanted to teach in a village school despite holding a B.Tech degree with good marks, he replied that he needed a job to pay back the education loan he had taken.