Engineering studies to cost more in Karnataka

Bangalore: Engineering students getting admission to private colleges
under the government quota will have to shell out Rs.2,500 more per
year as fee, taking the annual fee from Rs.30,000 to Rs.32,500, Higher
Education Minister V.S. Acharya said on Monday.

Acharya also said the government quota seats in private engineering
colleges have been brought down from 50 percent to 45 percent.

Karnataka has 184 engineering colleges, 149 of which are run by
private managements. They can fix the fee they like for their own
quota of seats, determining which has been a contentious issue between
the government and the college managements.

The private colleges, under the banner of 'Consortium of Medical,
Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMEDK)', have been
demanding that the government fix between Rs.50,000 and Rs.60,000 as
annual fee for its quota of seats in their colleges. They also want
the government to reduce its quota to 35 percent.

Acharya has been holding talks with COMEDK representatives to resolve
the issue and hoped that the new fee and the reduced government quota
would be accepted by all private engineering colleges in the state.
IANS