Self-financing colleges: Business institutions craving for money

The educational field is the best business investment nowadays with every educational institution starting from pre-schools to professional colleges turning into money- making centres rather than focusing on imparting quality education.

The self financing institutions were established in Kerala during the time of Chief Minister A K Antony along with the current ‘minority status’ associated with them. It was mainly mooted to attract wealthy students who were ready to provide huge capitation fee for getting enrolled for professional education. The number of such technical colleges having minority status in the state has increased and is still on a rise. So far no governments in power have been able to increase the quality of education imparted or bring about social justice in the case of these self financing colleges. Despite their slogans that education boosts the development and progress of the communities and the society, these private colleges secure ‘minority status’ eventually becoming business institutions craving for money. Admission to the state’s medical colleges is an unavoidable crisis and often caught in controversies. The management seats costs close to Rs 1.5 crore in most of the places. The managements ‘sell’ the seats to the rich who, despite the lack of qualification, aspire to become doctors.

Supreme Court in the TMA Pai case (2002) and Inaamdhaar case have repeatedly made clear to the state and central governments that the protection guaranteed by the Constitution for the cultural existence and educational progress integral to the minority communities should in no way be affected. The medical sector is in the hands of the mafia and the unethical ways of gaining money by the managements by neglecting the merited students should be curbed. The government as well as the communities should not permit these institutions to continue discrimination by securing the ‘minority status’. The demands to annul the minority status of the private colleges who make money and to initiate legal action against them are therefore justifiable and indispensable. All managements are responsible to maintain academic quality and social control. That was the reason why the SC recognizing the minority status ruled to ban huge fee and make admissions strictly on the basis of merit.

The private colleges manage to topple the Court verdict with the help of the government in power and the seat allotment becomes an adjustment between the state government and the management with the deserving merited students denied access to higher education. The reality that the Muslim managements who promulgate education as a way of service and an act of goodwill in the path of Almighty have turned into a hub of corruption and favouritism, is despicable. These managements should be ashamed of themselves if complaints are being registered against them before the Minority Commission for denying the poor students of their right to education. They should reanalyze and rectify their mistakes. The private institutions should be willing to take the students strictly on the basis of merit in entrance exams in order to ensure transparency and quality in educational standards and also to avoid huge capitation fee. The Commission recommendations suggest that it’s high time the younger generation come forward to stop those who repudiate the community interests for money posing as their leaders later on.

The role of the government in permitting laxity to the self financing colleges with or without minority statuses can’t be denied. The discriminatory attitude followed by the government towards the Muslim and Christian managements is what has aggravated the issue. It should be able to follow the same agreed procedures with the Christian managements in determining the fee as well as the admission process, with the Muslim managements as well. If they are not willing, the existing court rulings can be applied to ensure quality and transparency. The government is also responsible for ensuring justice by such institutions with minority status towards the minority communities. The affluent parents who aspire to make their children doctors pour in huge amount of money to get them enrolled in self financing medical colleges despite having no required qualification. This would neither benefit the medical field nor the society. The huge amount of money involved, the greed of the institutions, the underprivileged students left to suffer and the court intervening in the matter to provide justice are all despicable and should compel us to think.