Mumbai: The deemed medical colleges across India have announced steep hikes in their fees for postgraduate medical courses, following a similar increase in fees for the MBBS course. Among the institutes with the highest surge are two colleges run by MGM group; one in Navi Mumbai and the other in Aurangabad. They have increased the fees of their several courses from last year's Rs 30 lakh per annum to Rs 40 lakh. The colleges have also increased their fees for other branches by Rs 5 lakh.
Fee Hike in Private, Non-Deemed Medical Colleges
Some of the other private, non-deemed medical colleges have also witnessed a fee hike. From Mumbai, KJ Somaiya College's MBBS fees have been fixed at Rs 12 lakh. At Rs 17.03 lakh, Vedanta Institute of Medical Sciences in Palghar will collect the highest annual fee in the state for MBBS this year. Next is Kashibai Navale Medical College in Pune, which has not sought a fee hike this year, but its course costs above Rs 14 lakh per annum. The fees of NKP Salve Institute from Nagpur is at Rs13.08 lakh for 2024-25. For Prakash College from Sangli, whose fees were slashed two years ago, this year's fee is fixed at Rs 7.63 lakh.
The hike comes weeks after an unprecedented rise in fees for undergraduate medical courses at these institutes. Amrita Institute and Sri Ramchandra Medical College have hiked their MBBS charges by Rs 6 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, respectively.
The Reason Behind the Fee Hike
Experts believe that the Centre's decision to bring the cut-off marks for NEET PG exams to zero is the main factor behind the colleges' demanding higher amounts. Several private institutes had hiked their fees for some branches mid-way through the admission process last year as soon as the Centre lowered the NEET-PG qualifying cut-offs.
Statement Of Muzaffar Khan, A Thane-Based Medical Counsellor
“The government has commercialised the PG medical education by making zero percentile eligible for admissions. The prestige associated with medical education will be impacted because it is becoming pure business,” said Muzaffar Khan, a Thane-based medical counsellor. Such practice will prompt colleges to continue to increase their fees, he added.
Yenepoya Medical College in Mangalore has also announced a Rs 10 lakh hike from Rs 40 lakh to Rs 50 lakh for the dermatology and radio diagnosis branches. Sri Ramchandra Medical College in Chennai and Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences in Kochi have also seen a rise of Rs 5 lakh. Sree Balaji Medical College is currently the most expensive across the country, with its dermatology and radio diagnosis courses costing Rs 70 lakh, up from Rs 65 lakh in 2023.
