Telangana doctors oppose uniform fee structure at private medical colleges
Hyderabad: Expressing concerns over the ongoing efforts by private medical college management associations to dismantle the Convener Quota system in Undergraduate and Postgraduate medical admissions, under the pretext of introducing a uniform/common fee structure, the doctors in Telangana have sought the Government's intervention in this regard.
Recently, writing to the Health Secretary Christina Z Chongthu, the Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA) said that the proposal for a uniform or common fees across all categories is not a "benign reform", but actually "a calculated strategy aimed at eliminating affordable Convener Quota seats and converting merit-based medical education into a privilege accessible only to the affluent."
"Such a move strikes at the very foundation of equity, merit, and social justice that the State has consistently upheld in medical admissions," the association claimed.
HRDA pointed out that Convener Quota seats have historically served as a critical safeguard, enabling meritorious students from economically weaker and middle-class families, particularly from rural and disadvantaged backgrounds, to pursue medical education.
"Any dilution of this system, without robust statutory and financial protection, will impose an unbearable burden on students and parents, effectively excluding large sections of society from the medical profession. This will inevitably accelerate commercialization of medical education and adversely impact the future of public healthcare by narrowing social representation among doctors," it argued.
While considering the plea by Telangana Private Medical and Dental Colleges Management Association, seeking directions to the Health Department for fixing a uniform fee structure for all the students admitted in the first year of PG medical, dental and diploma courses across categories, except NRI students, the Telangana High Court passed an order directing the Health Department to consider the fee structure proposals by private unaided mendical and dental colleges afresh.
Referring to this, HRDA mentioned in the letter, "We are also deeply concerned by the selective interpretation and projection of the order passed by the Hon'ble Single Judge in Writ Petition No. 5779 of 2017 dated 02-12-2025. The said order is being cited in isolation, while earlier Division Bench judgments and settled constitutional principles relating to admission regulation, fee control, and prevention of profiteering are being overlooked. Subsequent communications and proceedings emanating from this selective reading have already created confusion, anxiety, and uncertainty among students and parents."
In this context and in the larger public interest, HRDA urged the Telangana Government to immediately approach the High Court by filing an appeal before the Division Bench against the order passed by filing an appeal before the Division Bench against the order passed by the Single Bench in W.P. No. 5779 of 2017 dated 02-12-2025, to prevent irreversible harm to students and the admission process.
Further, the association has requested the Government to unequivocally protect and maintain the Convener Quota system in both UG and PG medical admissions as a non-negotiable instrument of merit and equity, and refrain from implementing any uniform/common fee structure that disproportionately benefits private managements while imposing an excessive financial burden on poor and middle-class aspirants.
