The Supreme Court has given the green signal for private colleges offering Bachelor of Education (BEd) courses in Kerala. It has approved the increase in fees by Rs 45,000 for merit seats and Rs 60,000 for the management seats.

The fee, since 2008, has been Rs 29,000 for both merit and management seats. Advocates Maninder Singh and Harris Beeran, appearing for the association of the private BEd college owners, pointed out that the expenses to run the colleges were exceptionally high, especially after the University Grants Commission (UGC) published its renewed guidelines in 2017.

The Bench of Justices SK Kaul and MM Sundaresh rejected the State Government's stand that fees cannot be increased in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was conveyed by standing counsel CK Sasi that fees should not be hiked.