'Regulatory bodies mess up the future of students'

Every academic year, thousands of parents desperately hunt for seats in good professional colleges to ensure a ‘better future’ for their children. In their desperation they fail to check the credibility of the institutions, which sometimes proves costly as students of a private medical college in Tiruvallur district realised recently. However, what has come as a shock for the students is that the Madras High Court has laid the blame at their doors for joining an unapproved institution.

Justice K K Sasidharan, while dismissing petitions from 148 students of the ill-fated institution, praying to be allowed to write the university exam, castigated them for not having taken any effort to ascertain the factual position regarding statutory clearance before joining the college.

“In this era of social awareness and the availability of popular legislations like Right to Information Act, it cannot be said that the petitioners were the victims of false representation (by the college). Before spending their hard-earned money, the petitioners should have taken reasonable steps to ascertain the actual position,” the judge had observed. However, many say they are not aware of the technicalities governing professional education.

“Most of us don’t know what this college admission is all about,” says Ramani, a parent. “We go by the reputation of the institution based on hearsay. How can you wait for a long time to ascertain a college’s approval status when you risk losing a seat?” she asks.

The problem becomes acute for students from other states who seek admission in professional college in TN. Having exhausted other options, they are usually in a hurry to get admission and fail to check the statutory clearances.

Students’ Welfare Association of Parents president Manimohan said if regulatory agencies regularly update their official websites with the list of approved institutions, it would immensely benefit the aspirants.

“These regulatory bodies must share the blame for messing up with the future of students,” he adds.

Deepak Chandrakanth, district secretary of SFI says, “Not just the approving authorities, even all universities should come up with a list of approved colleges, their course details and fee structure. Many colleges make false claims on placements and all these issues should be sorted out.”

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com