Self-financed colleges in Haryana suffer as DHE yet to refund admission fee

Ravinder Saini

Tribune News Service

Rohtak, October 21

Self-financed degree colleges across the state are at the receiving end as the Department of Higher Education (DHE) has not refunded the fee to them even several days after the deposition of fee by the students figured in the first and second merit list for the admissions to first year of undergraduate courses.

The colleges are finding it difficult to pay staffers’ salaries and bear other expenses. The students are now bound to deposit admission fees online to the DHE due to Covid pandemic.

“As per guidelines, the DHE was to refund the admission fee to all government-aided and self-financed colleges across the state within 48 hours along with a list of students. Last date for deposition of fee by students for first and second merit list was October 8 and October 14, respectively but the DHE has not yet refunded the fee to any college,” said Kuldeep Arya, secretary, Haryana Self-Financed College Association.

He said the delay in refunding the fee had put the colleges in trouble as they were unable to pay the salary of their teaching and non-teaching staff and bear other daily expenses too. A majority of the college owners had taken hefty loans for developing infrastructure hence they had been waiting for the fee to repay the loan. Despite repeated attempts neither Director General (Higher Education) nor the Deputy Director could be contacted.