KSU demands fee regulatory body

SHILLONG, May 13: The Khasi Students’ Union has asked the state government to constitute a regulatory body that would regulate the fee structures of minority and private schools, colleges and other educational institutes in Meghalaya.
The union’s call for such a body followed reports that some prominent colleges in the city have been selling admission forms before the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) UG-2024 results are announced.
KSU general secretary Donald V Thabah told The Shillong Times on Monday that the union has always been against the monopolisation of education.
“We have been raising this issue when RC Laloo and Ampareen Lyngdoh were education ministers,” he said, pointing out that states such as Delhi, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu have put in place a regulatory body to monitor the admission fees, tuition fees, books, and other fees of minority and private schools and colleges.
“Students from poor financial backgrounds are affected by the monopolisation of education,” he added.
Thabah said if there is no regulation from the state government, students belonging to the BPL families cannot pursue their studies in the minority and private institutions because of the high fee structure.
He said the state government was compelled to constitute the Meghalaya Private University Regulatory Board after the CMJ University fiasco. “We are not sure if this regulatory board still exists,” he said.
Welcoming the decision of the NEHU to participate in this year’s CUET UG-2024 examination, he said the union would not like to see mistakes in the question papers.
“There should not be any problem in the admission process,” Thabah said.