MBBS fee lowered in 85% seats India

Fee reduced to Rs.5 lakh from Rs.5.5 lakh; NRI quota fee goes up to Rs.20 lakh

The Justice Rajendra Babu Committee, which was tasked by the State government to revisit the fee structure for medical courses, has provisionally fixed the fees for 85% of the MBBS seats in private self-financing medical colleges at Rs.5 lakh and fixed the fees for NRI seats at Rs.20 lakh.

By fixing the fee for 85% of the MBBS seats as Rs5 lakh, the committee has effected a Rs.50,000 reduction in the fees. However, it has suggested a Rs.5 lakh increase in the case of NRI seats, from Rs.15 lakh ealier to Rs.20 lakh. It has also fixed the fee for BDS seats general merit at Rs.2.90 lakh and retained fees for NRI seats at Rs.6 lakh.

Court’s criticism

The recommendations of the committee were submitted before a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Friday. The Division Bench, while reserving its order on the batch of petitions on the subject before it, criticised the State government for the delay in rectifying the mistakes in the ordinance it had issued for fixing the fee structure for medical seats in self-financing medical colleges.

Observing that there appeared to be lack of coordination between various departments, the court asked why the government had delayed rectification of the mistakes in the ordinance it had issued constituting the fee regulatory committee.

Writ petitions

The court also reserved its verdict on the writ petitions filed by various self-financing colleges challenging the earlier fee structure fixed by the committee constituted under the Kerala Medical Education (Regulation and Control of Admission to Private Medical Educational Institutions) Ordinance, 2017.

According to the petitioners, conferring the power to determine the fee of medical seats in each private medical college on the fee regulatory committee was against the fundamental rights of the colleges as guaranteed under law and the law declared by the apex court in TMA Pai Foundation case.

News Source The Hindu