HYDERABAD: Though as many as 60 colleges have sought and got permission from the High Court, exempting them from participating in Degree Online Services Telangana (DOST), the Osmania University has directed these colleges to still follow it’s fee structure.
Students allege that these colleges in the garb of being “autonomous” charge exorbitant fees. While the fee fixed by the Osmania University for different undergraduate courses is around Rs 12,000, some of these colleges charge around Rs 70,000.
At the St Francis Xavier Degree College, King Koti, for instance, students are charged `30,000 annually for B.Com course as against the prescribed fee of `7,000 per year. This is in addition to the annual examination fee of `1,155. Further, for each backlog students have been made to pay `2,050 instead of charging `1,205.
However, as per the Osmania University, there are around 20 autonomous colleges which have the authority to fix their own fee.
“These 60 colleges, some autonomous and others non-autonomous, approached the High Court and got permission to opt out of DOST. While autonomous ones can fix their own fees, others even while being outside DOST have to abide by the OU regulations,” explained Prof Ramchandram, vice chancellor of OU.
Ramachandram added that the Telangana Fee Regulatory Committee (TAFRC) creates guidelines for fees only for medical and engineering colleges and not for undergraduate courses.
OU’s fault
According to officials in the TS State Council for Higher Education, every year at the commencement of the academic year these “autonomous” colleges knock at the doors of the High Court and get permission to stay out of DOST while being affiliated to OU.
Stating that there is no such thing as autonomous colleges, the official said, “It is the fault of the OU which is extending affiliation to these colleges every year. By doing this they are allowing these colleges to blatantly flout the norms pertaining to admission based on reservation and fee regulation.”
4th phase of DOST counselling after inter supplementary results
Hyderabad: Students who confirmed their seats online through DOST in the three rounds of counselling will now have to visit the colleges to confirm the same. For this, the convenor said they have to visit the college by July 4. To confirm their admission in the college students need to submit college confirmation OPT along with the required certificates. Failure to report to the colleges before July 4 will result in the student losing his/her confirmed seat. For the students who are still awaiting their intermediate supplementary results, another round of counselling will be scheduled in the next few days after the results are announced, confirmed Prof R Limbadri, convenor DOST.