The high court issued directions to combat the practice of Capitation Fee during Admissions
The high court issued several directions to combat the threat, including the establishment of a dedicated portal for reporting such incidents, after deeming the practice of private educational institutions charging a capitation fee during admission to be a stark reality.
To avoid charging a capitation fee during admission, the management of private educational institutions cannot accept cash payments for tuition. Students and anyone else who feels cheated can make a report on the portal about any medical school that collects fees in cash.
The capitation fee during admission has plagued India’s educational institution; with colleges collecting money over the required fee either directly or indirectly. The highest court expressed concern regarding the threat and expressed regret that the practice continued to be widespread despite laws prohibiting it.
WHAT IS THE CAPITATION FEE?
The term “capitation fee” refers to the cash or other payment made in addition to the prescribed or approved fees to grant admission to a person who may not otherwise be eligible for a seat.
According to a person who spoke on condition of anonymity, an official of the commission, the UGC had appointed a committee to draft the fee regulation norms for self-financed deemed universities for medical or dental courses in response to a directive from the Madras high court. After consulting with stakeholders, the court directed the UGC to form a committee to regulate the fee charged by self-financed deemed varsities for medical or dental courses.
It should be taxable for educational institutions to collect “capitation fees”: Madras High Court The Madras High Court ruled on Monday that private educational institutions can be prosecuted for collecting “capitation fees,” which are amounts or donations paid in exchange for admission.
The educational institutions claimed that the charged capitation fee during admission was paid by the student’s parents in the name of donations to their trusts. As a result, they argued that the donation corpus cannot be considered his income because it was charitable in nature. The High Court decided that it was against the Tamil Nadu Educational Institutions Prohibition of Collection of Capitation Fee during Admission Act, 1992, to require students to pay a donation or capitation fee before they can be admitted.
The court stated that the appellate authority and the tribunal had made “perverse findings” and failed to take into account the Capitation Fee Act’s provisions. It also ordered the revenue authorities to cancel the Trusts’ registration because they cannot be considered charitable institutions.
The National Medical Commission and the Dental Council of India must ensure that counseling for all rounds, including the stray vacancy round, is finished at least two weeks before the last date for admission when they set the schedule for the admission process. The students whose names are recommended by the authority for admission in the stray round must be made public, as must their NEET exam rank.
The bench stated that the All-India Quota and State Quota rounds of counseling should be completed strictly within the stipulated timeframe by the Director General of Health Services and other relevant state government authorities.