It would be very difficult to cap the fee structure for medical courses this year at ₹25,000 or ₹2.5 lakh as had been done last year, as all admissions, including those in private self-financing medical colleges would be strictly on the basis of merit in the National Eligibility-Cum-Entrance Test (NEET), Health Minister, K. K. Shylaja, said in the Assembly on Tuesday.
As all admissions will be on the basis of the merit list in NEET, there will be no distinction between government seat or management seat this year onwards. Since no cross subsidy is allowed, there can only be a common fee structure for all seats, she clarified, while replying to a question by Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala.
Mr. Chennithala had said that there were concerns and apprehension that the fee structure for medical courses could be quite high this year. Ms. Shylaja pointed out that the Chief Minister had already initiated discussions with all political parties regarding the issue.
The government has already promulgated an ordinance — the Kerala Medical Education (Regulation and Control of Admission to Private Medical Educational Institutions) Ordinance 2017 — for the regulation of admission and fixing of fee in private medical educational institutions in the State.
According to the provisions in the ordinance, a committee headed by a former judge will regulate the admission, fee and reservation in self-financing colleges.
However, this is not the final answer and the government was open to more discussions regarding the fee structure in private self- financing medical colleges, Ms. Shylaja said. The government’s attempt was to see that the fee was affordable for the common man.
She said the managements of these institutions had already pointed out that they cannot collect capitation fee like before as all admissions have to be on the basis of NEET merit and that they would find it difficult to run the institutions.
The Opposition demanded that the Government should ensure that the fee for medical courses were not hiked exorbitantly.
