New Delhi: The Andhra Pradesh High Court's decision to overturn the state government's decision to raise the tuition fee of MBBS Courses in medical colleges to Rs 24 lakh per year was upheld by the Supreme Court.
In the last hearing it stated that tuition fees must always be affordable and that education is not a business that seeks to make a profit. The petitioner, Narayana Medical College, and Andhra Pradesh were each ordered to pay a cost of Rs 5 lakh, which must be deposited with the court registry within six weeks, by a panel of Justices M R Shah and Sudhanshu Dhulia.
"It was not justified at all to increase the cost to Rs 24 lakh per year, which is seven times the fee determined earlier. The goal of education is not to make money. The cost of tuition shall always be reasonable, "declared the bench.
The top court made this statement while rejecting a college's appeal of an Andhra Pradesh High Court ruling that had invalidated the government's decision to raise the tuition for MBBS students. The Andhra Pradesh Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee (for Professional Courses Offered in Private Un-Aided Professional Institutions) Rules, 2006 were cited by the high court as stating that the fee could not be increased or determined without the committee's recommendations or report.
The top court stated that the Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee must take into account a number of variables when determining or reviewing the tuition rates, including the location of the professional institution, the type of the professional course, and the cost of the available infrastructure. It stated that the sum recovered or collected in accordance with the unlawful government order cannot be given to the college management for their own use.
The bench stated, "In view of the foregoing and for the aforementioned reasons, both the appeals fail and deserve to be dismissed. Accordingly, they are dismissed, but with costs estimated at Rs. 5 lakh that must be split equally by the appellant and the State of Andhra Pradesh and deposited with the Registry of this Court within a period of six weeks.
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