The Self-financing Engineering College Managements Association has agreed to retain last year's fee in 50 per cent of the seats in colleges under the association which are allotted to the government for admissions through the online Centralised Allotment Process conducted by the Commissioner for Entrance Examinations.
The decision came following talks convened by Education Minister M. A. Baby here on Friday.
Elaborating on the highlights of the meeting, the Minister said that an agreement based on the decisions arrived during the meeting would be signed in Thiruvananthapuram on May 31. The annual tuition fee collected for government seats in self-financing engineering colleges last year was Rs.35,000.
Mr. Baby said that nearly 9,500 seats available in 42 engineering colleges affiliated to the association would be available as government quota, as per the agreement. He said that admission to these seats would be based on existing norms on merit and reservation.
The intake in government-controlled self-financing colleges was 5,236, while the number of seats available in government colleges was 4,271. The Minister said that option registration for allotment of seats would begin on June 3. He said that the admission process would begin immediately after the signing of the agreement with the association.
Mr. Baby refused to comment on whether the government would accept the fee structure proposed by the association in management seats. He said that a final decision would be taken based on the talks with the association representatives. He said the managements had requested the government to hike the fee, as they pointed out that the expenses had gone up considerably.
The association representatives, led by its president, G.P.C. Nayar, said that there would be an increase in the fee for management seats. The details of the new fee structure would be announced after the general body meeting of the association in Thiruvananthapuram on May 31.
He said that the existing annual tuition fee for management seats was Rs 90,000 and the refundable caution deposit, Rs.1.5 lakh. Mr. Nayar said the association agreed to retain last year's fee in government seats so that the admission process would not be delayed.He said that many students would migrate to other States, if the process got delayed.
The Minister also pointed out nearly 2,500 students would get free education in engineering colleges in the State, as per the AICTE's fee waiver scheme.
