Medical students in Telangana are angry with the state government for allowing private medical colleges to hike fees for PG seats, just a day before the counselling started. Telangana junior doctors have demanded the state government to roll back their order.
The state government on Monday (May 4) released a Government Order – dated April 14 – allowing fresh fee regulation for the block period of 2020-2023. “The Government after careful examination of the matter, hereby accepts the fee structure as recommended by the Telangana Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee...for the Private Unaided Non-Minority and Minority Post Graduate Medical/Dental Professional Institutions in the State for the Block Period 2020-2023,” the GO read.
The seats are divided into three categories for admissions. Category 'A' seats come under convener quota- students who have secured ranks between 5,000- 15,000 in the NEET PG exam; Category 'B' is management quota seats; and Category 'C' is for NRI students. As per the fresh regulation, the fee for medical colleges under 'A' category has been set up between Rs 7.75-Rs 7 lakh, depending on the college. Previously, the fee for 'A' category was around Rs 3.5 lakh.
For 'B' category students the fee has been fixed at Rs 24-23 lakh, going up from around Rs 12 lakh until now. The fee for 'C' category is fixed at around Rs 72 lakh, up from Rs 35 lakh.
“It is outrageous to increase the fee which is almost double and above. By this effectively, the government has prevented poor meritorious students from pursuing medicine. How can a poor student arrange the money within a day?” asked Telangana Junior Doctors’ Association chairman Dr Vijayender.
“Due to the ongoing lockdown, we can’t even stage a protest,” he lamented.
The junior doctors alleged that the GO was released very tactfully, so that they can’t approach the court and get a stay immediately.
Demanding that the government roll back their GO. Vijayender said, “Due to the prevailing health crisis, everyone has understood our (doctors’) role. There are many brilliant minds who want to serve the people. But if you make education accessible only for the wealthy, how will they serve the needy? They will only try to make the money which they spent towards their education.”
Web counselling for PG seats begin on Tuesday
TJUDA demanded that the government should consider the plight of aspirants coming from poor financial backgrounds who cannot arrange money in just a day. “Now students will be forced to give another attempt to secure a better rank by wasting one more year, or opt for a course which charges relatively less,” Vijayender noted. “We demand the government to roll back their GO and ensure that eligible students pursue medicine.”
Meanwhile, fees have been revised for Dental colleges as well. For 'A' category students, the fee has been fixed at around Rs 6 lakh-Rs 5.15 lakh; for 'B' category the fee has been fixed at Rs 13.62 lakh-Rs 8 lakh; for 'C' category the fee is fixed at Rs 2 crore-Rs 12 lakh.