Karnataka Engineering Colleges Hiked Fees By 10% For Govt Quota Seats – News18

The fees for government seats in Karnataka private engineering colleges have been increased by 10 per cent. According to the state’s Higher Education Minister M C Sudhakar, the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government had a consensual agreement with the Private Engineering College Management Association in this regard in February this year.

Speaking at a press conference at Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) office on Thursday, Sudhakar said that before the election code of conduct came into effect, the previous government announced this hike. He further stated that the fee hike cannot be reversed as it has been decided as per the procedure.

“The decision to hike engineering fees by 10 per cent was taken by the previous BJP government. In February, there was an official order. When it was brought to our notice when we came to power, we examined how it was done. As per procedure, the fee hike was done in deliberation with private colleges. It can’t be reversed now,” the minister said. He clarified that any decision to revise the agreement will create confusion among students.

In 2022, there was a 10 per cent fee hike as well. Furthermore, when the consensual agreement was signed between the state government and the Karnataka Unaided Private Engineering Colleges Association, the fee hike was mentioned for two years, reports add. The All India Democratic Students’ Organisation (AIDSO) Karnataka State Committee have expressed disappointment over the decision. AIDSO said that the state government has “crushed” the dreams of deserving students of the state.

Meanwhile, the government has reportedly said that they will make efforts to reduce the fee hike by 5 per cent. Any decision to revise the fee, however, is unlikely to take place this academic session.As per The Hindu, there are a total of 1.1 lakh seats available for engineering courses in Karnataka’s private engineering colleges. Of these, 53,248 seats may be allotted under the government quota. Also, there are about 25,171 seats that might be available through the Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMED-K) and around 33,463 seats would be available under the management quota.