Bangalore: Uniform fees in all medical/engineering colleges in Karnataka
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore
Bangalore, Feb 25: In a major initiative to ensure that all the students of professional courses in various private medical and engineering colleges were not exploited by unscrupulous managements during admissions, the State Government has directed all the managements to charge uniform fees during admissions to different courses.
Admission to professional courses in the State would be completed before July 22.
While Government would hold the CET engineering examination on May 1 and 2, the private managements would be holding their COMED-K tests for engineering courses on May 12.
The Government would decide on holding the CET for medical and dental course only after the Supreme Court hearing the case on February 28, Higher Education Minister C T Ravi said on Monday.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting with COMED-K representatives, the Minister said the Government was aware of the fact that some of colleges were charging abnormally extra fee ranging from Rs 9,000 to Rs 65,000 per student during admission on the pretext of providing internet, bus service, ID card, coaching class fee and Wi-Fi etc.
To ensure transparency in the collection of fee, all the managements have been told to submit a complete list of all services they would be providing to students so that they could not collect fees beyond the prescribe fees set by the Government.
The Government would fix the fee to be charged by colleges while signing an agreement this year, he said.
As per the agreement signed last year with the COMED-K colleges, the colleges have to charge Rs 35,500 and Rs 27,500 for a seat in medical and dental courses respectively and the fee ranging from Rs 33,000 to Rs 38,000 for an engineering seat, Ravi said.
The fee charged by minority institutions last year was Rs 3.57 lakh and Rs 2.53 lakh per seat in medical and dental streams respectively and Rs 1,10 lakh to 1.37 for a seat in engineering, the minister said.
The fee structure, however, would be decided only after a meeting with COMED-K officials in the next few days.
The State Government would not allow private managements to hike the fee beyond reasonable limits, Ravi said.
Colleges which have collected more than the fee prescribed by the Government have been asked to return the money to students before the commencement of the next academic year, he said.
A high-level committee has been constituted to probe into the affairs of engineering and medical colleges run by religious and linguistic minorities following public complaints that some of them have misused their mandate in terms of student admission, appointment of teaching staff, and allegedly indulging in business.
The committee comprising top officials of collegiate, technical and medical education and member-Secretary of Karnataka Knowledge Commission M K Sridhar would probe into alleged irregularities conducted by engineering and medical colleges run by religious and linguistic minorities.
The panel has been asked to submit report by March 31, he said promising to take stern action on the basis of the probe findings.