KOCHI: For a state that has been bemoaning the migration of its student population to foreign countries, the Budget proposal to provide financial support to students who avail of education loans up to Rs 10 lakh in domestic institutions has come as good news.
However, some of those in the education industry are sceptical as to whether the subvention of 3% interest on the loan amount will be an attraction for those who are ready to take loans of more than Rs 25 lakh to go abroad.
Sajith Thomas, an education expert, told TNIE, “This will be a great help for the students hailing from middle class and lower middle-class families. One highlight of this is that youth who couldn’t think of studying in premier institutions like IITs, IIMs, NITs and others in the country due to the heavy fee structure can now make use of this facility.
NIST will cost you anywhere between Rs 12 to Rs 13 lakh to complete the four-year course.” This has come at a time when banks are showing reluctance to disburse education loans due to poor repayment scenarios, he added. Former minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan hailed the Budget as a boon for the higher education sector in the state. “The loan facility will stem student migration,” he said.
However, another expert was sceptical. “The crucial question is how the subvention of 3% on the annual interest on the Rs 10 lakh loan amount is going to work towards attracting a student who is ready to avail of loans of more than Rs 25 lakh to go abroad for higher studies?” asked a top official of a premier university in Kerala.