FRA has been told to submit a report on expanding the ‘scope of its work’
The state has around 300 autonomous colleges, including nearly 160 for arts, science and commerce, where fees are fixed at the institutional level, and 34 private universities. Private universities are also allowed to fix their own fees, but under Maharashtra Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) Act, 2023, they are required to table their balance sheets in the state legislature. The state is, therefore, considering an amendment to the 2023 Act to bring private universities under FRA’s purview.
The higher and technical education department has directed FRA to examine the issue and submit a report on expanding the “scope of its work”. Sources in the state department said educational institutions should not indulge in profiteering, irrespective of the category they belong to. We are studying whether regulation of these fees can be brought under FRA’s purview as many of the courses offered by these colleges are ‘professional’ in nature,” said an official. An official said these financial statements are only tabled and are neither reviewed nor regulated.
Mumbai: The state govt is considering bringing autonomous colleges and private universities under the purview of Fee Regulatory Authority (FRA) following long-pending demands from students and parents. Two more private universities, from the health sciences category, are set to join the list soon. With relatively less stringent regulatory norms, an increasing number of educational trusts are seeking private university status. they are required to comply with the norms of their affiliating universities While autonomous colleges are allowed to fix their own fees under University Grants Commission guidelines. “State universities are not regulating these fees, and there have been complaints about expensive courses for some time.