Karnataka: No takers, engineering colleges slash fees
Except for a few top-ranking colleges in the city, most of the colleges offering seats at a huge discount.
Bengaluru: On Day One of the Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMEDK), students were in for a surprise. Some colleges were offering their BE seats (irrespective of streams) for half of the fee fixed according to the consensual agreement between the state government and the association of private engineering colleges.
According to the consensual agreement signed between the state government and the private engineering colleges, colleges can charge up to Rs 1.70 lakh as an annual tuition fee. But, interestingly, except for a few top-ranking colleges in the city, most of the colleges were offering seats at a huge discount.
Biotechnology and IS courses are the worst hit. For instance, Basaveshwar Engineering College, Bagalkot, was offering Biotechnology for a paltry annual tuition fee of just Rs 50,000! Bapuji Institute of Engineering & Technology, Davangere was offering B.E. Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering, Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering, Textile Technology courses for a mere '55,000 as annual tuition fee.
Srinivas Institute of Technology, Mangalore, was offering all its courses except the mechanical engineering stream for just Rs 60,000 as annual tuition fee. According to the officials at the Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), one of the reasons for the low fee structure is the poor demand for the B.E courses in the state colleges.
“Only a handful of engineering colleges from Bengaluru are in demand. Those colleges have fixed '1.70 lakh as an annual tuition fee. The rest of the colleges have reduced the fees to find takers for their seats,” said an officer.
Problem of plenty: According to the head of the private engineering colleges, the mushrooming of engineering colleges in the North Indian states has led to this problem.
No confusion
Meanwhile, COMEDK engineering counseling started on Tuesday. On day One no problem was reported. "Counselling was conducted smoothly," said Mr. AS Shrikanth, Chief Executive, COMEDK.
Pact on fee structure
Private medical colleges run by minority educational institutes are expected to sign the revised consensual agreement on medical and dental fee structure and seat matrix with the state government soon.
According to sources, these colleges have in principle agreed to surrender 27% of their seats to the government CET students at an annual tuition fee of '70,000 for medical and Rs 45,000 for dental.
“We are expecting medical and dental seats from the minority colleges in the second round of seat allotment process,” informed an officer from the state higher education department.
Shafi Ahmed, Secretary, Minority Professional Colleges' Association, informed that the association is yet to take a decision. “Only after the meeting with the state government, will a decision be taken,” he said.