Fine Of Rs. 1 Crore For Demanding Capitation Fees

At New Delhi, the government has approved amendments to a proposed Bill to curb unfair practices in higher technical education institutes, which include raising to Rs. 1crore as the fine for demanding capitation fee and provisions for gripe compensation mechanism.

The amendments to the Prohibition of Unfair Practices in Technical Educational Institutions, Medical Educational Institutions and Universities Bill, 2010 were given the nod by the Union Cabinet along with a change in the title of the Bill. The bill, which was introduced in Lok Sabha in March last year, was referred to the Parliament Standing Committee on HRD, which submitted its recommendations in May this year.

The source said that 41 recommendations of the committee were accepted while seven were rejected. The accepted ones include raising penal provisions for charging capitation fee from Rs. 50 Lakh to Rs. 1 crore. The Bill would also have provisions for a gripe compensation mechanism and will also have scope for inclusion of any new type of unfair practice other than the specified ones after the passage of the bill.

The source also included that - Giving the Bill more teeth, a new clause has been introduced prohibiting unqualified teachers from being engaged. Failure to meet any promise made in the prospectus would also be on offense. Based on the Cabinet's decision, the title Technical Educational Institutions, Medical Institutes but not Agricultural Education and Research as they are mostly state subjects.