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| Friday, August 03, 2007
Colleges asked to refund excess fee
High Court asks three private medical colleges to stick to prescribed
fees
Chennai: The Madras High Court has directed three unaided private
medical colleges in Tamil Nadu not to collect fees in excess
of the one fixed by the Permanent Committee. They should either
refund the excess amount or adjust it against next year’s
fee.
The Permanent Committee had fixed Rs. 3 lakh as fee for the
Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute at Kancheepuram, Rs.
2.25 lakh for the Coimbatore-based PSG Institute of Medical
Sciences and Research and Rs. 2.3 lakh for the Sri Mookambigai
Institute of Medical Sciences, Kanyakumari.
The First Bench consisting of Chief Justice A.P. Shah and Justice
P. Jyothimani passed the order on a batch of petitions, filed
by the respective colleges, parents associations and the Student
Federation of India. The Government sought to vacate the stay
on the Permanent Committee’s order.
“Those three institutions, which are the only unaided
private medical institutions in the State, have collected tuition
fees more than the amount fixed by the committee. It is not
permissible in law, inasmuch as the Supreme Court has made it
very clear that the fees fixed by the Committee shall be valid
for a period of three years unless the same is modified by the
Committee on a revision. We are of the view that the institutions
cannot be permitted to charge the tuition fee more than what
has been fixed by the Committee by virtue of an interim stay
granted by this court.”
A single judge had stayed the Committee’s order on fee
structure and permitted the colleges to collect Rs. 4 lakh,
subject to the institutions agreeing to refund or adjust the
excess amount in the event of the Committee fixing the annual
fees at a lower rate.
On Thursday, the Judges said, “By virtue of the judgments
of the Supreme Court, the orders of the Permanent Committee
for fixation of fees are legally enforceable for a period of
three years from the date the fees is fixed. However, it is
open to the institutions to apply to the Committee for revision
with appropriate materials.”
Noting that the institutions could not be permitted to charge
tuition fees more than what had been fixed by the Committee
by virtue of an interim order of stay granted by the High Court,
the Bench asked the colleges to adjust the balance excess amount
against the fees for subsequent years.
Undertaking
It also asked students to give an undertaking that if the Permanent
Committee increased the tuition fees, they would be bound by
the order. The Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute, which
said it had collected tuition fees of Rs. 4 lakh each from three
students, would refund the balance amount. The PSG Institute,
which received Rs. 4 lakh each from nearly 50 students, was
asked to adjust the fee against the subsequent year’s
fees. The Bench posted the matter to September 17 for final
disposal.
Courtesy: The Hindu
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