For two days, students at Sree Nidhi Institute of Science and Technology (SNIST) in Telangana have been protesting against the management's decision to withhold exam hall tickets for BTech final-year students. The issue stems from the state government's delay in releasing arrears related to fee reimbursement, leaving students caught in a financial bind as exams approach.
According to the students, the college management is withholding semester exam hall tickets, citing delays in the fee payments under the state government's fee reimbursement scheme. Private colleges in the state have reportedly not received arrears under the fee reimbursement scheme for the past three years.
The annual tuition fee for BTech students at SNIST is around Rs 1,35,000. The college has demanded that students pay one-third of the annual tuition fee upfront and provide a written assurance to pay the remaining amount later in order to receive their hall tickets.
Amid the ongoing dispute between students and college management, exams originally scheduled to begin on December 18 have been postponed.
“For students who have fees due in order to get your hall tickets, you need to pay the part payment of Rs.30,000 or should submit PD (post-dated) cheques. For students who have full fee due, you should pay Rs.1,00,000 to get your hall tickets,” read a message allegedly received by students on official WhatsApp groups.
The protesting students also informed that their parents have been contacted by the college management, urging them to clear the outstanding tuition fees before the exams begin.
Speaking to EdexLive, a final-year BTech student from SNIST, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “This is extremely unfair, especially since everyone's financial situation is not the same. For some students, Rs 1,35,000 is a huge burden. The college should not be using exams to pressure students. The issue should be resolved between the college and the government, not by dragging students into it.”
As per news reports, the Telangana government owes nearly Rs 6,000 crore to various educational institutions, including junior, degree, engineering, polytechnic, and nursing colleges, under its scholarship and fees reimbursement scheme. The outstanding dues date back to 2021, and continue to accumulate.
Earlier this year, the Congress-led state government had assured students that it would promptly clear the fee reimbursement and scholarship dues for the current academic year, which were left unresolved by the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government. However, the situation still remains unchanged.
A similar issue arose earlier this year when private colleges in the state reportedly withheld students' original certificates, citing the non-receipt of fee reimbursement from the state government.
In response, the Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) issued a letter to all concerned universities, urging them not to demand tuition fees from students eligible for fee reimbursement and to refrain from withholding original certificates due to the government's delay in disbursing the reimbursement.
