Irregularities alleged in Gujarat engineering college

By Manas Dasgupta

GANDHINAGAR, SEPT. 5. Students of computer and information technology at the private sector Nirma Engineering College (NEC), affiliated to the Florida Atlantic University of the United States, are up in arms against what they called ``profiteering'' by the college.

The students have written a letter to the Gujarat Governor and Chancellor of Universities in the State, Mr. Sunder Singh Bhandari, requesting his intervention in the affairs of the institution, which they claimed was charging higher fees in contravention of the guidelines of the All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) and the Supreme Court judgment in the Unnikrishnan case.

The computer and information technology stream has a sanctioned strength of only 20 seats, but the institute admits 80 students every year. The students study for two years in the Nirma campus and the last two at the Florida Atlantic University. The institute charges $ 5,000 (about Rs 2.40 lakhs) per annum as fees from each student for all the four years. In addition, it also charges an extra Rs. 8,000 every two months for subjects such as humanity and economics which are part of the curriculum.

According to the SC judgment, every institution, irrespective of affiliation with Indian or foreign universities, are required to follow the fee structure prescribed by the AICTE.

Under this, 50 per cent of the students are to be admitted on the ``free seats'' category with a fee limit of Rs. 4,000 per year, 45 per cent on ``payment seats'' with a fee limit of Rs. 40,000 and the remaining seats are for ``non-resident Indians'' with $ 5,000 fees. But the NEC charged $ 5,000 from all the 80 students, a whopping Rs. 1.80 crores a year per batch.

After receiving affiliation from the U.S. university three years ago, the NEC, the students alleged, had not passed on any benefits from the 30 per cent commission foreign institutions offer to Indian ones for registering students on their behalf.

The authorities were aware of the irregularities on the fee structure and in admitting students in excess of the permissible limit for the foreign-affiliation course, while it honoured the 580-seat limit for all other faculties, the students alleged.

To avoid detection by the University Grants Commission team, which today started its three-day visit to check the facilities available for granting `deemed varsity' status, the NEC authorities sent away the Florida University students on a three- day picnic to Baroda and Kevadiya Colony.

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