Pay 2nd Year Fees to get Hall Tickets: Karnataka Private Medical Colleges to 1st-Year MBBS students

In fact, the private medical colleges have allegedly denied issuing hall tickets for the examinations to the candidates unless they clear the second year fees, State Secretary and In-charge of RGUHS NSUI Karnataka, Sanjay Raj informed Medical Dialogues.

He also informed that those students who are appearing in the exam for a second or third time are being asked to pay a huge amount of repeaters' fees as well, which has become a matter of concern for the students considering the ongoing COVID situation.

Also Read: RGUHS revises Conduct of MBBS Examinations January 2022, Check out schedule here

As per the latest media report by The Hindu, the medical colleges are asking the students to pay their second-year fees in advance as there has been a major delay in the commencement of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) Counselling and UG Medical admissions.

This delay has been caused after the Central Government's policy of OBC and EWS reservation in the All India Quota seats came to be challenged before the Supreme Court.

The Hindu adds that due to this delay, the private medical colleges have lost their source of income and they are finding it difficult to pay salaries to their faculty members and staff.

However, this has put a huge financial burden on the students, and commenting on the matter, a student pursuing medical education in a reputed private medical college in Bangalore informed the daily that the examinations were scheduled in mid-January.

Even before we appear for the first-year examination, they are asking us to pay the second-year fees in advance. Many of us cannot make immediate arrangements for it, but colleges are telling us that they will not issue the admission tickets and we will not be able to appear for the year-end examination," the student added.

Mentioning that several students have already paid the second year fees, another student said, "The college has signed an undertaking that if we do not pass the first year, the fee will be returned."

On the other hand, the Vice-Chancellor of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) has clarified before the daily that the colleges can ask for second-year fees only after the first year examinations are over and the results have been declared.

"Only after students clear the examination, colleges will know which students have been promoted and can move to the next year," the VC told the daily further adding that the students may approach the University if they are denied their hall tickets for the examinations.

Speaking to Medical Dialogues regarding the issue, Sanjay Raj, State Secretary & in-charge of University (RGUHS) NSUI Karnataka said, "Some private medical colleges are asking that only after the students clear the next year's fees, they will issue them with hall tickets. The same scenario is in private dental colleges as well. It just shows the adamant nature of the private institutes."

"We have decided to approach the University VC and request to direct the private institutes not to collect the fees before the exams are over. The University should take action and release circular to all colleges directing not to charge next year fee," he added.

Further referring to the issue of repeaters' fees, Sanjay Raj added, "For the repeater students who are taking the exam for the third time, they need to pay repeaters fees. Even though the University fees is lesser the management is asking the students to pay Rs 40,000-50,000 per subject. So if the student had three or four subjects, the particular student has to pay around 2 lakh rupees, which is really difficult during COVID times. Regarding this matter, the rules had been framed in 1994, but the situation has changed now and so we have decided to approach the High Court regarding the issue."