KARACHI: Increase in DCET fees irks students: College defends hike
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Jan 24: The decision to increase the tuition and other fees exorbitantly at the Dawood College of Engineering and Technology has caused concern in the student community.
The students of the college have strongly opposed the plan to charge newcomers under an enhanced fee structure. They said the 100 per cent increase was tantamount to depriving people of the engineering education.
The students have urged the Board of Governors of the college to immediately intervene and have a downward review in the fee structure.
The said only last year the fees for newcomers were fixed more than double, and now once again the college had decided to double the fees.
They said the increase would discourage the students, particularly those coming from other provinces, and it was a clear indication that the government wanted to close the door of higher education to students belonging to lower-middle and middle-income group families.
The students said that while other public sector universities linked the increase in fees with the rate of inflation, it was highly disgusting that the DCET should increase the fees exorbitantly.
Talking about the fee structure for newcomers, principal of the college, Dr Muhammad Saleem Chaudhry, said there was no increase in the fee for students to be admitted under the self-finance scheme, and in the case of merit students an increase of about Rs200 per month in the tuition fee would be effected in the new session.
He said the newcomers (batch 2002-2003) would have to pay Rs500 per month as tuition fee, while the students of other batches would pay their fees as per schedule already effective in their case.
He maintained that a very insignificant increase had been made in different fees and an amount to the tune of Rs12000 would be collected from new students at the time of admission.
However, a study of the college prospectuses for the last year and the year before showed that students were charged a total of Rs6450 at the time of admission, while in the subsequent years they were required to pay Rs4250, which included Rs3600 as one-year tuition fee.
The principal said the increase was unavoidable under the present situation.
He maintained that some other government-run institutions had made remarkable upward revision in their existing fee structure.
He said that the college would have to pay an mount to the tune of Rs0.3 million to the Mehran College of Engineering and Technology on account of affiliation and the financial load would eventually be put on students.
“We were asked by the Mehran University to raise the fee and bring it at par with the university,” he said said and added that the decision to increase the fee was final and there did not arise any question of retreating on the issue.
To a question he said the finance committee of the college, a forum formed by the federal education ministry, had the authority to initiate and implement the enhanced fee schedule.
“Once the Board of Governors of the college has given approval to the admission prospectus of the 2002-2003 session, there is no need to get any fresh approval for the increased fee structure,” he said.
He said only those elements whose “Bhatta” had been stopped by the college were opposing the increase in fee. “For better educational facilities and improved academic environment we are spending a lot of money and we had no choice but to increase the fee,” he added.
The process of admission to first-year engineering classes at the DCET will start by the end of this month.
According to a senior official at the college, there is no increase in the number of seats for admission this year (2002-2003), and about 360 admissions will be offered under merit. As many as 60 seats will be available under the self-finance scheme.
The official said no seats had been reserved for admission under the minister quota. The entry test of the applicants would be conducted by the Bahria University on March 11.
CORRIGENDUM: The college administration has issued a corrigendum of its earlier notification that the students of the 1998-99 batch are required to pay Rs4250 as tuition fee within fifteen days.
The latest notification says the students of the 1998-99 batch will be charged Rs1720 and not Rs4250.
