COIMBATORE: No student would like to don the attire of a beggar, but that ws the situation that he was in, which has forced this 23-year-old student to beg for money to pay the hefty fees of a private polytechnic college.
“I sought the intervention of the Collector, and even the officials from Adi Dravidar Welfare Department had directed the college management to provide my course completion certificate, but the management refuses to do so,” he added. Meanwhile, following the incident, sources said, the college management had handedover the course completition certificate along with his class 12 marksheet and school transfer certificate to Ashok.
As per the Government Order (GO) 92, the tuition and skill development fees to the tune of `6,500 for the students belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) would be paid by the government, while the students have to bear only the additional expenses including books and bus fees, explained the resident of Kinathukedavu, S Ashok, who had completed a diploma course in Mechanical engineering at a private polytechnic college in Othakalmandapam, last year.
Saying that the college management has been refusing to provide his course completion certificate in spite of repeated requests, he pointed out that the management fees for the course per year is `35,000 excluding the books that costs `5,000.
“The college management has been demanding the pending amount of `57,000 as the government has paid the college management only `13,000, the scholarship amount,” the student said. Stating that he got admission at the college through an agent, Ashok said, he enrolled in the college only after the agent assured him that he need not pay any fees other than the book fees.
“I had paid the book fees for both the years,” the student who had joined diploma course after completing his Class XII, said adding that he had enrolled himself in another private arts and science college for BCom and the college had been asking for his course completion certificate.
Referring to the semester examination that starts on Friday, he said that the college management would not allow him to sit for the examination before submitting the course completion certificate.
Citing the financial instability of his family, he said that he was left with no other option than to beg for money from the public, as his life is at stake.
Despite several attempts, the college management remained unavailable for the comment.