The Hindu : Karnataka News : Subsidised fees for poor students may be sought

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 29, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

Subsidised fees for poor students may be sought

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, JUNE 28. The Cabinet Subcommittee on Common Entrance Test (CET) today decided to approach the A.B. Murgod fee fixation panel, seeking a separate subsidised fee structure for the economically weaker sections, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes, and meritorious students.

The three-member subcommittee, which met here on Monday, decided to send a request to the Murgod panel and wait for its response. If the subsidised fee structure is approved, the Government will go ahead with the seat selection process based on the 75:25 seat-sharing formula in its favour.

It is learnt that if the panel declines to come out with a separate fee structure, the Government will either promulgate an Ordinance or approach the Supreme Court. On Friday, the State Cabinet decided on the ordinance to fix a 75:25 seat-sharing formula before the commencement of the new academic year. The Cabinet had decided to file a review petition in this regard before the apex court. On June 21, the Murgod panel had fixed the annual fees for MBBS in the range of Rs. 1.4 lakh to Rs. 1.65 lakh for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07. The fees for the dental (BDS) course was fixed between Rs. 90,000 and Rs. 1.1 lakh, depending on the infrastructure and needs of different colleges. The fee structure was uniform for the CET and management quota seats. The fees for postgraduate medical courses ranged from Rs. 2 lakh to Rs. 2.24 lakh while those for postgraduate dental courses were in the range of Rs. 45,000 and Rs. 1.7 lakh. The panel had not made any distinction between general merit, SC/ST or backward classes while fixing the fee structure. The panel was under pressure to reduce the proposed fees.

The Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMED-K) Chairman, R.L. Jalappa, had even commented that with the fees suggested the managements would have to run a veterinary college.

When asked to comment on the subcommittee's decision to request the Murgod fee panel, Mr. Jalappa wanted to know what power the panel had to fix a separate fee structure.Mr. Jalappa, along with other management representatives, including the Karnataka Private Medical Colleges' Association President, Shamanur Shivashankarappa; the Karnataka Private Dental College's Association President, L.K. Raju; and the Forum of Unaided Private Engineering Colleges Chairman, B.T. Lakshman, and Premchandra Sagar, have been called for a meeting by the Government on Wednesday.

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