9 medical colleges under DMER radar for overcharging fees

Pune: The Directorate of Medical Education Research (DMER) has ordered an inquiry into student complaints regarding development fees charged by medical colleges, admissions conducted under the institutional quota, and fee concessions denied to reserved category students.
The inquiry was initiated following complaints from students across Maharashtra to the state Common Entrance Test (CET) cell, concerning nine medical colleges.
The commissioner of medical education, Rajiv Nivatkar, stated in the inquiry letter issued to the nine colleges: "The complaints have indicated that colleges are engaged in significant financial misconduct, selecting specific students to protect their interests. Consequently, students who were declared eligible for admission per the rules were not admitted. Accordingly, orders have been issued to investigate the admission proceedings of nine colleges."
Nivatkar appointed a two-member committee for each college to investigate the admissions. The two members belong to private unaided colleges. After a thorough investigation, the committee will submit a report to DMER, and accordingly, action will be taken.
The admission process for MBBS and BDS courses in various govt and private medical colleges in the state is conducted through the State CET Chambers. Approximately 15% of seats in private colleges are reserved for admission through the ‘institutional quota'. However, before the admission process began, the fee regulation authority appointed by state govt determined the fees for courses in private medical colleges, which include tuition and development fees.
A decision was made to charge three times the regular fees for admissions through institutional quota. The colleges have published this fee information on their websites, and they are expected to charge students accordingly. However, upon reviewing two CAP admission rounds, it was observed that the institutional quota seats remained unfilled in many private colleges. Students applied for these seats based on their financial capacity, and admissions were announced according to their merit. Students went to the colleges for admission, but their entries were denied for various reasons, leaving the seats vacant in both rounds.
A candidate applying for BDS in Pune said, "When we went to colleges to secure admission, we were denied entry for various reasons and intimidated." Another candidate, who chose to remain anonymous, said, "Students are being charged between Rs50,000 to Rs1 lakh for various schemes like ID cards, health clubs, gymkhanas, laboratories, computer labs, and doctors' clubs. This exploitation of students and parents is ongoing in all private colleges in the state. Despite this, the CET cell and the Fee Regulatory Authority are shirking their responsibilities and appear to be turning a blind eye. In such a situation, to ensure justice for students and parents, we demand an investigation into all medical colleges."
Against this backdrop, Shiv Sena Yuvasena joint secretary Kalpesh Yadav also wrote to the DMER and demanded an investigation into the institutional quota admission process of all colleges. "Medical colleges are exploiting students and parents under the guise of development fees. While it is mandatory to charge 10% of the total fees as development fees, colleges are indiscriminately charging students. Furthermore, we demand that guilty colleges be fined and the excess fees collected from students be immediately refunded. We hope you will consider both these demands positively and inform us about the actions taken," he said.
Pune: The Directorate of Medical Education Research (DMER) has ordered an inquiry into student complaints regarding development fees charged by medical colleges, admissions conducted under the institutional quota, and fee concessions denied to reserved category students.
The inquiry was initiated following complaints from students across Maharashtra to the state Common Entrance Test (CET) cell, concerning nine medical colleges.
The commissioner of medical education, Rajiv Nivatkar, stated in the inquiry letter issued to the nine colleges: "The complaints have indicated that colleges are engaged in significant financial misconduct, selecting specific students to protect their interests. Consequently, students who were declared eligible for admission per the rules were not admitted. Accordingly, orders have been issued to investigate the admission proceedings of nine colleges."
Nivatkar appointed a two-member committee for each college to investigate the admissions. The two members belong to private unaided colleges. After a thorough investigation, the committee will submit a report to DMER, and accordingly, action will be taken.
The admission process for MBBS and BDS courses in various govt and private medical colleges in the state is conducted through the State CET Chambers. Approximately 15% of seats in private colleges are reserved for admission through the ‘institutional quota'. However, before the admission process began, the fee regulation authority appointed by state govt determined the fees for courses in private medical colleges, which include tuition and development fees.
A decision was made to charge three times the regular fees for admissions through institutional quota. The colleges have published this fee information on their websites, and they are expected to charge students accordingly. However, upon reviewing two CAP admission rounds, it was observed that the institutional quota seats remained unfilled in many private colleges. Students applied for these seats based on their financial capacity, and admissions were announced according to their merit. Students went to the colleges for admission, but their entries were denied for various reasons, leaving the seats vacant in both rounds.
A candidate applying for BDS in Pune said, "When we went to colleges to secure admission, we were denied entry for various reasons and intimidated." Another candidate, who chose to remain anonymous, said, "Students are being charged between Rs50,000 to Rs1 lakh for various schemes like ID cards, health clubs, gymkhanas, laboratories, computer labs, and doctors' clubs. This exploitation of students and parents is ongoing in all private colleges in the state. Despite this, the CET cell and the Fee Regulatory Authority are shirking their responsibilities and appear to be turning a blind eye. In such a situation, to ensure justice for students and parents, we demand an investigation into all medical colleges."
Against this backdrop, Shiv Sena Yuvasena joint secretary Kalpesh Yadav also wrote to the DMER and demanded an investigation into the institutional quota admission process of all colleges. "Medical colleges are exploiting students and parents under the guise of development fees. While it is mandatory to charge 10% of the total fees as development fees, colleges are indiscriminately charging students. Furthermore, we demand that guilty colleges be fined and the excess fees collected from students be immediately refunded. We hope you will consider both these demands positively and inform us about the actions taken," he said.