Pbi varsity’s decision to collect PTA funds from SC students opposed

Tribune News Service

Patiala, June 17

Students of Punjabi University have flagged the university’s decision to collect fee under the parent-teachers association (PTA) funds head from all SC category pupils of constituent colleges.

While the university authorities claimed that they had issued directions to constituent colleges as per discussions with officials of the Finance Department of the state government, students want them to take an independent decision and not collect the fee.

Members of various student political parties have raised the matter with university officials. They said the university had issued directions to all constituent colleges to collect PTA funds from students of the SC category.

“The university has issued directions to principals of constituent colleges stating that such funds are being collected from all students of government colleges as per directions of the state government. They want constituent colleges to collect funds from us, which are used to pay salaries of the guest faculty and take care of other expenditures,” said Rashpinder, a student associated with the Punjab Radical Students’ Organisation (PRSU).

“The fee of the SC category students is paid as per the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme. Therefore, no amount should be collected from the SC category students. But, the university wants to use funds collected from them for its various expenditures,” said students.

When contacted, the Dean, Academic Affairs, Dr BS Sandhu, said the state government’s Finance Department had asked the university to collect fee from students of constituent colleges as was being done in other government and private institutions. So, the university had decided to collect fee from the SC category students under the PTA funds head at its constituent colleges, he added.