Mumbai: Starting from the 2024-25 academic year, students admitted to private, unaided Ayurvedic, Homeopathy, and Unani degree and postgraduate courses in Maharashtra under the institutional quota will have to pay five times the regular tuition fees.

This significant hike, approved by the Department of Medical Education, means that the cost of these courses will now run into millions of rupees.

The decision follows a memorandum from the Association of Management of Ayurvedic Medical Colleges of Maharashtra. In a meeting chaired by the Minister of Medical Education, it was agreed that there would be no objection to charging fivefold fees for institutional quota seats.

The Fee Regulatory Authority has been directed to carry out the necessary actions in line with the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act, 2015.

The fee hike has sparked protests from student organizations and parents, who argue that the increase will make medical education unaffordable for the majority. Student representatives have voiced concerns that medical education, already inaccessible to many due to high costs, will now be affordable only to the wealthiest families.

With limited seats available in government-run medical institutions, many students are compelled to seek admission in private colleges. This fee increase, they claim, will place undue financial pressure on parents, forcing them to pay exorbitant amounts.

Student groups accuse the government of exploiting the system, and many believe that this decision will force aspiring medical students to pursue their studies abroad, in countries like Russia and Ukraine, where education is more affordable.

According to Kuldeep Ambekar, President of Student Helping Hands, “The new education policy must address these rising fees in private colleges. Without regulation, students and their families will suffer immensely.”