Meeting to discuss decision on fee structure
If the dialogue with the State government on the withdrawal of a circular fixing the fee structure in PU colleges fails, private colleges will move the court or resort to a shutdown of PU colleges across the State, according to the Private College Managements' Association (PCMA) here on Thursday.
At a meeting, PCMA president M.K. Panduranga Shetty said the association had been called to discuss the circular with Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Vishweshwara Hegde Kageri on Saturday. “We will present him the memorandum, and if the circular is not withdrawn, we will have to take the legal route or ask private colleges across the State, numbering around 2,000 to close down,” he said. He added that legal opinion had been sought, and the circular was found violating Supreme Court's judgment on the TMA Pai Foundation case.
On May 11, the Department of Pre-University Education had issued a circular that covered guidelines on application forms, prospectus and prescription of fee in PU colleges. Using a formula that accounted for approved intake to the college, the government had fixed an annual fee of Rs. 1,300 per student, out of which half the amount would have to be refunded to the Department of Pre-University Education.
“We are expected to pay teachers according to the sixth pay commission. We are expected to get accredited for NAAC, wherein the mandated infrastructure like library software, though allotted Rs. 100 in the government's formula, costs more than Rs. 25,000. How can we run an institution?” said Y. Azeez Ahmed, joint secretary of the association.
The sentiment was echoed by managements from nearly 50 institutions present there, who expressed concern about managing spiralling expenditure, reduction in application fee, and infringement on the rights of unaided colleges.
Government fixes annual fee at Rs. 1,300 a student ‘We will move court, if dialogue fails'
