Bangalore, Feb 2: Karnataka government has constituted a high-level committee to look into the affairs of higher educational institutions, run by religious and linguistic minorities, following complaints from the public that some of them have misused their mandate in terms of student intake, appointment and are indulging in “business”.
Higher Education Minister C T Ravi told reporters here today the committee, comprising top officials of collegiate,technical and medical education and member-Secretary, Karnataka Knowledge Commission Prof M K Sridhar, would come out with recommendations on revised guidelines for such institutions.
As per guidelines, they are supposed to reserve 60 per cent of seats for minorities but there are complaints that some of them, particularly engineering colleges, are not following the rule and “selling” seats for those from outside the state and “others” and indulging in “business.”
“The very purpose of according them minority status has failed”, the minister said, also referring to complaints on appointments. “The committee will conduct an enquiry into all this”.
The National Minority Commission had also written to the State to come out with revised guidelines for them.
Ravi also said some engineering and medical colleges have violated rules on fee regulation—as per the Venkataramaiah committee report—by collecting more money from students, than what's prescribed by the Government.
Some of these colleges had claimed they are providing internet and bus services, among others, while others have totally denied having collected extra money.
An enquiry has been ordered and institutions which charged a small sum would be warned not to repeat it, while government would take a serious view in cases where they had charged exorbitant sum, and at a meeting he had with Medical Education Minister S A Ramadass yesterday, a proposal to even blacklist them was discussed.
Ravi said the Common Entrance Test for under-graduate engineering courses would be held as per state syllabus this year - and not as wished by All India Council for Technical Education which wanted a CET for the entire country—as the State had introduced CBSE syllabus to first PUC (11th standard) only this year.
He also said a large number of government quota BEd seats are vacant in private colleges, whose management have approached the government to transfer those to them.
Government has ordered an enquiry by Principal Secretary, Higher Education Department, to look into how such seats can remain vacant even as managements claim students are willing to pay more and get enrolled under management quota.
