Two medical colleges in the city are under the scanner for allegedly charging excess fees. One college allegedly threatened to withhold attendance of students who failed to pay the “excess fees” by Monday. The management informed students that they would be marked absent if they failed to do so.
It is illegal for colleges to make their students pay excess fees over and above what has been fixed by the State government.
As many as 58 students have lodged a complaint with the Admission Overseeing Committee (AOC), which has issued a notice to the management of East Point Medical College.
A parent of one of the students, on condition of anonymity, told The Hindu that those who had not paid the excess fees were asked to not attend classes on Wednesday. “The college has justified collecting the fees stating that they need to buy new equipment. They said that all students should pay the fees latest by Monday,” the parent said.
According to the complainants, second-year students admitted under the institutional quota were asked to pay ₹80,900, while those in the government quota had to pay ₹91,800. This is in addition to the ₹77,500 and ₹6.33 lakh tuition fees collected from students in the government quota and institution quota seats, respectively. Students also alleged that they had paid extra fees last year, but the facilities offered by the college were of poor quality.
This is not the only college that has come under the scanner.
Students of the Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital have also approached the Admission Overseeing Committee alleging that they were asked to pay an additional ₹1.48 lakh to the college. Some of the sub-heads under which the management has reportedly sought money include a cricket ground, gym, air conditioners, and a swimming pool fund.
The AOC has ordered both the medical colleges to refund the excess fees collected, failing which they have to explain why action should not be taken against them. In the notice, the committee has warned the colleges that it would recommend withdrawal of recognition by the Medical Council of India (MCI).
Authorities of both colleges did not respond to The Hindu ’s request for a comment.
