Sustained campaigning and agitation launched by the Dalit Vidyarthi Parishad (DVP) against the donation menace in BEd colleges led to Rani Chennamma University of Belagavi banning two private institutions in Vijayapura district for three years and fining them Rs 30 lakh each for collecting money from students under the guise of donations.
The university cited a clear violation of government rules, according to the report by The New Indian Express.
At a press conference on Thursday, July 24, Srinath Pujari, Founder President of DVP, criticised private educational institutions, claiming they have turned into money-making enterprises and openly extort money from parents under the pretext of donations.
"Despite the government setting up district-level regulatory bodies under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner to curb this practice, these bodies exist only on paper and the Education Department has remained a silent spectator," he fumed.
Pujari insinuated that most private schools and colleges are charging fees far beyond what is prescribed, and none are adhering to government guidelines, placing an unbearable financial burden on parents with weak financial backgrounds.
The action was a result of continued protests and legal pressure brought to bear by the DVP.
SMRK BEd College and Monica Kanni BEd College were taken to task for charging exorbitant fees, appointing unqualified faculty, and admitting students irregularly in buildings lacking basic infrastructure.
"The inspection report on July 8 this year, highlighted grave irregularities in the colleges and also reported that the colleges lacked proper buildings and had no qualified faculty," he observed.
Pujari said that based on the committee's findings, the syndicate decided to suspend both colleges for three academic years starting from 2025-26, and imposed a hefty fine of Rs 30 lakh, as per the report by The New Indian Express.
The syndicate also decided to transfer students already admitted in the previous academic year to other nearby institutions which have better academic environments.
