VIJAYAWADA: Private junior colleges in the city seem to have gone overboard in starting the admission process for the next academic session even when the Board of Intermediate Education (BIE) is yet to issue an official order in this regard. The colleges have reportedly begun sending their representatives to the houses of their prospective students.
According to the BIE, no private institution is allowed to initiate the admission procedure until the board issues an order specifically in this regard. This process usually takes place in the month of June. However, the colleges are taking up the admission drive and luring parents with attractive discounts.
The colleges’ first target is their students’ younger siblings who would be finishing Class X this academic year. After taking the details, their staff personally visit the families and initiate the admission procedure with an application fee, which costs Rs 1,500-Rs 3,000.
Sujatha (name changed), a parent, told TNIE, “Our elder son is a student of a private college and our younger son is a class X student. One day, my elder son called us from the college and said that the principal would be visiting our house with some staff.
They came and, at first, said that the visit was regarding our elder son. However, they began to coerce us to make our younger son join the same college. They managed to convince us and even took the application fee of Rs 1500. Later we came to know that all students in my elder son’s college were questioned whether they have any siblings and when they would be interested in securing an admission in the institute.”
Though the State government has constituted an education monitoring commission, the officials concerned seem to be unaware of the developments. AP School Education Regulatory and Monitoring Commission CEO A Sambasiva Reddy announced that soon all schools and junior colleges across the State will be inspected to assess their functioning. Discussions on fee regulation will also be held.