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IIM Fees Cut to Rs 30,000/- Per Year In a classic case of what’s good for the student is harmful for the institution, the Union human resources development ministry, on Thursday, decided to drastically reduce fees for the post-graduate programmes in the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) to Rs. 30,000/- a year from around Rs. 150,000/- now. The revised fees will take effect from the 2004-05 academic session. The decision was taken after considering a recent Supreme Court ruling and a review of the U. R. Rao committee's recommendations, the ministry said in its order. Observing that the fees charged by the IIMs at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore and Kozhikode were exorbitant at Rs 150,000 a year, the ministry pointed out these institutions were fully funded by the central government and their financial requirements were met through the Union Budget. No other charges or fees should be levied from students, except mess charges, the release said. On Tuesday, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh's interim budget allocated Rs 45 crore to the six institutes for the coming year against Rs 74.73 crore this year. Although, officials in the human resources development ministry said the ministry would seek additional funds for the IIMs in the supplementary demand for grants during the regular Budget for 2004-05. Reacting to the ministry's decision, IIM Ahmedabad students said the quality of education would suffer. Infrastructure facilities, exchange programmes and other facilities would also be affected, they added. This cut in fees means a substantial decline in the income of the IIMs, jeopardising the viability of the newer IIMs at Lucknow, Kozhikode and Indore. There is also the possibility of a caste system emerging among the six IIMs, with the big three - Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Bangalore - emerging as the superior ones. |
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