The decision to give full authority to private colleges to decide the institution fee acted against students likeliness as colleges ended up hiking the college fee by more than 300% of the original fee. Last year, during the time of admissions, students were asked to sign an affidavit stating they will have to pay the fee as decided by the institute once the matter resolved by the court. And the college administration has the right not to agree to any illegitimate demands made by students. But the decision of students backfired on them as now they are made to pay 300% more fee than the original fee.

Once the Uttarakhand Cabinet gave the decision to allow private medical colleges to decide their college’s fee by themselves, all the three private medical colleges raised the college fee exceptionally. To this students started to protest against the decision, sat on the road with slogans like “educate or eradicate”, “make future not money”, “student or ATM”. Students demand the university to withdraw its decision to make education affordable to students.

According to students, the college is not only demanding the hiked fee for the second year, which is more than 20 lakhs but also the college is demanding extra 15 lakhs to compensate for the fees of the first year, which was initially 5 lakhs. Most of the students paid the college fee by the student loan, such a fee hike is going to make affording education difficult for many students.

To such response by college, Chief Minister Trivendra Rawat said, “Rs. 500-700 crore is invested in a medical college. The government does not provide any monetary help to set up one. The government wants to welcome investors in the state, so we’ve allowed the private medical institutes to decide their fee. However, if the institute charges exceptionally high amounts, then the government will intervene”.

Ravindra Jugran from Private Medical University Joint Parents’ Association said, there is no relief from institute’s end nor from governments end. If such situation resides they will have to approach Uttarakhand High Court.

Here, one must also take note of the fact that colleges do not guarantee placements but when it comes to fees hike and its recovery retrospectively, then they are on their toes to implement the rule. When questioned on the hypes mentioned in their college prospectus they shy away but when it comes to extraction of money in name of fee hike, they hold no bar.

Here FillandFind would like to make clear that we are not alleging any particular college or institution and there are many colleges who are not into this business of extracting money in name of fest, attendance, fine etc. in the garb of other dues but as it is righly said A bad sheep infests the whole flock.

Here the colleges are not only to blame, the rigourous and rigid educational system of our country where the regulatory bodies oftenly clashes over their jurisdiction, governments question each other on rights over the exam conduction, paper leaks making news headlines daily, makes the job of proper regulations and management difficult and this makes it obvious, that miscreants will surely take advantage of the plight of students.

But one must not lose hope over this concerning situation of the education in India and fees hike in particular. It is part of collective responsibility of all stake holder to come together and do their bit. Its upto all of us to point out these issues and bring them to their logical conclusion.