Govt will pay fee in two installments, don’t take fee from girl students at the time of admission: Minister instructs colleges
Govt to pay fee in two installments in September and February-March
3 min read
It is designed to support Indian women by offering a one-time grant of USD 30,000 to cover tuition fees. (Representative image/ Express photo)Days after announcing that the state government will extend 100 per cent reimbursement of tuition and examination fees for girls pursuing professional courses who come from families having an annual income of Rs.8 lakh, higher and technical education minister Chandrakant Patil on Thursday clarified that colleges are instructed not to take fees from girls at the time of admissions and that the government will pay the fees in two installments.
“Colleges have been given clear instructions that no girl should have to pay the fees at the time of admission and that the fee will be reimbursed by the government later. If any college asks students to pay fees upfront at the time of admission, it should be reported to the higher and technical education department,” said Patil as he was interacting with students and other stakeholders in a webinar on Thursday aiming to clarify doubts around the recently announced scheme. He said that the rate of enrolment of girls in professional courses is only 34 percent in Maharashtra as opposed to 64 per cent in case of boys.
Previously, girls from OBC and EWS categories received 50 per cent fee reimbursement, contrasting with 100 percent reimbursement for girls from SC and ST categories. Under the new decision, girls from OBC, EWS, and SEBC categories, including orphans, with annual family incomes up to Rs.8 lakh will now receive 100 percent fee reimbursement. The scheme has been introduced to boost enrolment of girls in professional courses such as medical, engineering, pharmacy among others.
The scheme however was criticized by beneficiaries pointing at problems with the reimbursement system. Many student unions had highlighted that as per prevalent practice, girls have to pay the fees at the time of admission and wait for reimbursement from the government, which is generally delayed; making it difficult for girls to continue studying.
On Thursday, Patil put an end to the confusion by stating that the state government will issue money through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system in authorized bank accounts of eligible girl students in two installments; one in September and second in February or March. Girls are then expected to transfer the fee amount to colleges.
All those taking admission to professional courses in the 2024-25 academic year will be eligible for this scheme, if they meet the qualifying criteria; including those who may have started education earlier but are still continuing their course and fulfil the condition of minimum of 50 percent of attendance from the previous academic year.
Patil said, “Instead of asking girls to pay fees upfront at the time of admission, colleges are instructed to appoint nodal officers to help eligible girls successfully apply for the scheme so that the first installment can be claimed by September 30.”
Highlighting that many college managements approached the state government with problems to sustain without payment of fees at the time of admission, Patil said, “The state has tied up with nationalized banks to help colleges get no-mortgage loans for this purpose. Since these are not going to be huge amounts, at individual college levels, the interest will be affordable to colleges.”
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