Education not biz

In a significant order that should set the ball rolling towards making education accessible to a large section of our able and aspiring youth who are at present unable to pursue certain courses of their choice because of the prohibitively high fees, the Supreme Court has maintained that education is not a business to earn profit. The apex court made this observation while ruling that the tuition fee must always be affordable. Towards this end, it upheld the Andhra Pradesh High Court verdict quashing a state government decision of September 2017 to increase the tuition fee of medical colleges – by seven times of that fixed earlier in 2011 – to Rs 24 lakh annually. The court termed this hike as unjustifiable and violative of the rules prescribed for the fixation or review of fees.

The issue of fees charged by private medical colleges and their regulation by the authorities concerned has been a contentious one as many such institutes – some without proper clearances or infrastructure – have mushroomed in the country over the past few decades. That these colleges were being run by managements as businesses with the motive of profiteering was clear as they resorted to the flourishing practice of ‘paid seats’ and capitation fees, giving merit the go-by. It naturally caused much unrest not only among the meritorious poorer aspirants but also the society as people harboured doubts over the quality of doctors emerging from these institutes and the education imparted to them.

Not surprisingly, the affected parties have regularly sought the intervention of the authorities concerned, including the Central and state governments and courts, for relief. But a solution acceptable to all stakeholders has remained elusive. When regulatory authority Medical Council of India was abolished in September 2020 and replaced by the National Medical Commission by the NDA government, it was touted as a historic reform for the medical education framework as it promised to steer it towards a transparent, qualitative and accountable system. But the ground situation is still plagued by controversies, right from the admission process to fee structure. The SC ruling provides a direction to the remedial steps needed.