Govt. rejects offer of medical colleges

Minister of State for Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil said the government is exploring all options and a decision would be taken in the next four days. The offer by 12 medical colleges to part with 85 per cent of their total seats (1,500) on the condition that the fee be Rs. 4 lakh per seat per year has been rejected outright by the State government. Sources in the Medical Education

Department pointed out that the government would not agree to this offer as under the consensual agreement, the fee for seats under the government quota is around Rs. 60,000 and Rs. 4.6 lakh under the Comed-K quota. “Agreeing to Rs. 4 lakh for all seats will be detrimental to the interests of students,” a source explained.

The source added that the ordinance on National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is clear that the State government could conduct entrance tests/counselling only for its share (which is 40 per cent as per the consensual agreement). Minister of State for Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil told The Hindu that the government is exploring all options and a decision would be taken in the next four days.

M.R. Jayaram, Secretary of the Karnataka Professional Colleges Foundation, said, “If the government gives us Rs. 4 lakh per annum, we will surrender not just the 40 per cent seats under the government quota but 85 per cent of our seats, and the government can conduct a single counselling this year.”

Although there is lack of clarity in what the fee fixation committee, headed by Justice Gururajan, has concluded, sources said that the fee structure ranges from Rs. 2 lakh to Rs. 4 lakh based on the faculty and infrastructure. Dr. Patil said that the government would look at the contents of the report only if talks with managements of private medical colleges fail.