Extracts from various pages are put below. The title of each extract is put in large bold letters
TIMES IMPACT
Centre orders probe, TN sends notices to 2 medical colleges
Day After TOI Expose On Capitation Fees, Threat Of Derecognition
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi/Chennai: The Times of India’s expose of medical seats being put on sale for Rs 20-40 lakh by colleges in Tamil Nadu has triggered a probe into the scam by the Union government. Both the HRD and health ministries on Wednesday said they were examining the expose and, if it was found correct, would take action, including derecognising the colleges.
Expressing his shock at the expose, which was jointly done by TOI and Times Now, HRD minister Kapil Sibal said, ‘‘We are trying to get hold of the evidence. I have asked Times Now to furnish me the tapes. As soon as we verify the facts, action will be taken.’’
Union health secretary Naresh Dayal said the colleges would be derecognised if the evidence against them was established. He said, “Such incidents are very disheartening and need to be seriously curbed. If the evidence is correct, we will take action like derecognising such colleges.’’ The Medical Council of India, the regulator for medical education, dubbed the sale of medical seats an “unpardonable act” and called an executive committee meeting to discuss the issue.
Meanwhile, the TN health department has decided to issue showcause notices to Sri Ramachandra University and Shree Balaji Medical College for violating the TN Act and SC ruling banning capitation fee. “We will initiate criminal proceedings if they are guilty,” said state health secretary V K Subburaj.
MONEY TALKS, MERIT WALKS
“I have never been the chairman. Once I was a trustee. Before election I quit. I have absolutely no connection with the college or the trust” Jagathrakshakan
“This is how corruption in medicine starts early. The student all his life will work as a corrupt doctor to raise back the money he gave as donation”
—Naresh Dayal, HEALTH SECRETARY ‘‘We are trying to get hold of the evidence. I have asked Times Now to furnish me the tapes. As soon as we verify the facts, action will be taken.’’
—Kapil Sibal, HRD MINISTER
CANDID CAMERA: TV grabs show administrative officer of Shree Balaji Medical College Johnson (right) and deputy registrar of Sri Ramachandra University A Subramaniyan (above) negotiating capitation fees for admission
TANGLED WEB: The website of Shree Balaji Medical College and Hospital not only clearly mentioned Jagathrakshakan as its chairman, it also carried a message from him for new students
Jagathrakshakan
Missing A Govt Seat By A Few Marks Could Mean Coughing Up Half-A-Crore Of Rupees. Thus, Many ‘Doctor Dreams’ Die
Karthika Gopalakrishnan | TNN
Chennai: Apart from rampant profiteering, the capitation fee scam has an ugly side which damages the very basis of the merit system. Middle-class students, who achieve high scores in Class XII but miss a seat in a government-run medical college by a few marks, often find themselves unable to cough up the huge sums required for entry into a private institution. Instead, the slot goes to a mediocre candidate who is able and willing to pay Rs 20-40 lakh.
Tamil Nadu, for instance has 15 government medical colleges with a pool of 1,745 seats which are decided on the basis of marks. In addition, there are another 15 which are privately run; some of them have a government quota, but most don’t.
In effect, more than 1,000 seats are filled up by private managements whose only criterion for admission is the ability to pay capitation fees. Where does that leave a student who misses out on admission in a government college by a few marks?
Hannah Lois Dorothy of CSI Baines School, Kilpauk, for instance, stood first in her school. “I have an aggregate of 191.25/200 (95.6%) in Physics, Chemistry and Biology but the government cutoff score for medicine is around 196 (98%). I have written entrance exams for a few medical colleges. But I cannot afford to pay the capitation fee ranging between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 30 lakh to get a seat,” she says. Such students, unable to pay capitation fees for a seat despite scoring well, may have to settle for a different field of study. In Hannah’s case, she is considering engineering as an option.
Principal K Mohana of Modern Senior Secondary School, Nanganallur, says the bigger tragedy is that bright students who are genuinely interested in serving society are often robbed of the chance of studying medicine because they are unable to pay hefty donations. “Since it is harder in CBSE schools to score as high an aggregate as the state board schools, most CBSE students prefer Engineering over Medicine,” she said.
According to Shanmuga Sundara Pandian, whose daughter Lalitha Rajalakshmi plans to appear for counselling for a medical seat, the system is especially unfair to middleclass families. “I think 195/200 (97.5%) is a very good score. Students will have worked very hard to get here. But if they miss out on a seat, it is unrealistic to expect middle class parents to spend lakhs on donation,” said Pandian.
“Private medical colleges charge Rs 40 lakh as capitation fee in addition to the fee. By the end of an MBBS course, a parent shells out close to Rs 1 crore. Who is ready to pay that much? Even though students may be very bright, it is merely a dream for middle-class families to be able to let their child study medicine,” he said.
— With inputs from
Lakshmi Kumaraswami
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Chennai: Terrible. That’s how the fraternity of doctors feels about the impact of capitation fees on medical education. The death of merit has led to a progressive decline in medical services, say most experts in the field. In days ahead, unless suitable legislative amendments are brought, the patient is the one most likely to suffer, goes the consensus.
“It’s a catastrophe waiting to happen,” says surgical gastroenterologist Dr R Surendran, who is the head of department in Chennai’s Government Stanley Medical College and Hospital. “What adds to the problem of quality is that many of the private medical colleges don’t have patients or faculty. In a few years, we would have doctors who can’t even measure blood pressure,” he said.
Many of his colleagues agree. “When you pay capitation fees to join a medical college, you make a wrong start,” says Dr George Thomas, editor, Indian Journal of Medical Ethics.
“Though many things can be bought with money in India, commercialising health and education leaves us with no hope. Doctors unlike professionals are treated well in the society. No doctor
starves for food. Every doctor is treated with respect by patients. They surrender themselves with hope of cure. And for this social obligation, every doctor should stick by ethics,” he says.
Given the autonomy which deemed universities currently enjoy, anyone with 60% marks in Class XII and enough cash can get an MBBS seat. To make matters worse, the country is estimated to have a requirement for two lakh additional doctors every year but is able to produce only 32,000 MBBS graduates.
With the demand-supply gap being so vast, the government is seen as reluctant to impose restrictions that may slow down the growth of the medical education sector. However, some are of the view that too much is being made of the issue since students who pay capitation fees are eventually forced to raise their standards in keeping with the needs of the profession.
“There are meritorious students in medical colleges who underperform because they don’t like the stream while some who have paid have the eagerness to learn,” sayS former vice-chancellor of Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University K Anandakannan.
A Subramani | TNN
Chennai: It is impossible to bottle the capitation fee genie in the absence of clear-cut punitive norms, say jurists. Judgments at various levels notwithstanding, the mode of regulating or penalising a privately-run educational institute which demands or accepts capitation fee remains unclear, they say.
States such as Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have enacted laws to ban educational donations based on Supreme Court judgments, but action against offenders can only be in the nature of recommendations to central agencies. The Tamil Nadu Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Collection of Capitation Fee) Act 1992, for instance, contains directions for educational institutions to maintain financial data, academic records, etc, but does not talk about punishment if guidelines are flouted, pointed out a senior jurist. “If an institution is found guilty, the state can only recommend to the All India Council for Technical Education or Medical Council of India or University Grants Commission for appropriate action, which includes disaffiliation,” S Prabakaran, president of Tamil Nadu Advocates’ Association (TNAA) said.
The mushrooming of private colleges over the past decade and the government’s increasingly hands-off approach to higher education is seen to be the prime factors. A jurist said the UGC makes noises once in a while but never carries out genuine inspection to verify infrastructure amenities of institutions and examine admission or fee-related issues in depth. Rarely, if ever, are complaints or petitions against educational malpractices entertained by state administrations or legal forums.
One exceptional case cited in TN is that of a student named Sasikala. Daughter of a vegetable vendor from Pappireddypatti in Salem, Sasikala had enough marks to be admitted for MBBS under the government quota. Still, a city-based college denied her a seat in 1989-90 as she was unable to cough up a few lakhs as capitation fee. The girl moved Madras High Court. However, Sasikala could not get any interim relief and a whole academic year went by even as the case was pending in the court. In 1990-91 she got a medical seat at the Chengalpattu Government Medical College, and she decided to join it. The private college, utilizing the opportunity, opted for an out-ofcourt settlement and offered a decent sum as compensation if she withdrew the case. The case was withdrawn.
A couple of years ago, another student, though admitted under the government quota which entails payment of only the state-stipulated fee, was similarly unable to join a private medical college as the management demanded an additional Rs 5 lakh. The student had no option except to approach courts as the admission deadline was to expire the next day.
A bench, specially constituted by then chief justice A P Shah, heard the matter and warned the college of severe action if it denied admission to the student. The college, which neither admitted making a demand for capitation fees nor offered seat to the student, did relent in the end and let the student in.
The bench used the opportunity to lay down exhaustive guidelines on publication of marks, merit lists and fee details on the college website. It also stipulated that fees should be collected only through demand drafts or cheques.
Notwithstanding such intervention by courts, donations continue to be charged freely. Now in order to help tighten norms, Prabakaran said the TNAA would soon file a writ petition to direct the statutory oversight committees to bring deemed universities also under their wings, both for admission and fee structure regulation.
subramani.a@timesgroup.com
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi/Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has instructed the health department not to hesitate to send recommendations for cancellation of the licences of two deemed universities — Sri Ramachandra University (SRU) and Shree Balaji Medical College — to the Medical Council of India (MCI) and the Union Grants Commission (UGC) if they are guilty.
Officials of these universities were caught on camera asking for capitation fees of Rs 20-40 lakh, in violation of the Tamil Nadu Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Collection Capitation Fee) Act 1992 and Supreme Court rulings against capitation fee.
State health minister M R K Panneerselvam also promised action against the two colleges, one of which is run by a party colleague and central minister. Officials in the HRD ministry pointed out that capitation fee was banned by both the Supreme Court as well as the Tamil Nadu government. Although medical education does not come under the HRD ministry, officials said action could be taken through coordinated action between the HRD and health ministries. At the HRD end, the UGC can withdraw the deemed university status of these institutes.
MoS health Dinesh Trivedi told TOI that “capitation fee introduces corruption early in a medical student’s life”. Having paid a huge amount to enter medical college, doctors are tempted to lower their moral guard when they start to work in order to recover the amount. Trivedi said, “This is a shocking expose. Not just medical standards go for a six, but corruption among the medical fraternity starts from here.”
“Merit is completely overlooked as poor students can never pay up. Not only the health ministry but also the Income Tax department must deal with such cases sternly,” he said
Medical Council of India chairman Dr Ketan Desai said, “Taking money against medical seats is an unpardonable act. If council members agree after going through all documents provided to us by TOI, we will order an inquiry into the scandal. Since the colleges in question are deemed universities, we will recommend to the UGC to derecognise them.”
MONEY TRAMPLES MERIT IN THIS RACE
Missing A Govt Seat By A Few Marks Could Mean Coughing Up Half-A-Crore Of Rupees. Thus, Many ‘Doctor Dreams’ Die
High Scorers Often Lose Out To Deep Pockets
Karthika Gopalakrishnan | TNN
Chennai: Apart from rampant profiteering, the capitation fee scam has an ugly side which damages the very basis of the merit system. Middle-class students, who achieve high scores in Class XII but miss a seat in a government-run medical college by a few marks, often find themselves unable to cough up the huge sums required for entry into a private institution. Instead, the slot goes to a mediocre candidate who is able and willing to pay Rs 20-40 lakh.
Tamil Nadu, for instance has 15 government medical colleges with a pool of 1,745 seats which are decided on the basis of marks. In addition, there are another 15 which are privately run; some of them have a government quota, but most don’t.
In effect, more than 1,000 seats are filled up by private managements whose only criterion for admission is the ability to pay capitation fees. Where does that leave a student who misses out on admission in a government college by a few marks?
Hannah Lois Dorothy of CSI Baines School, Kilpauk, for instance, stood first in her school. “I have an aggregate of 191.25/200 (95.6%) in Physics, Chemistry and Biology but the government cutoff score for medicine is around 196 (98%). I have written entrance exams for a few medical colleges. But I cannot afford to pay the capitation fee ranging between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 30 lakh to get a seat,” she says. Such students, unable to pay capitation fees for a seat despite scoring well, may have to settle for a different field of study. In Hannah’s case, she is considering engineering as an option.
Principal K Mohana of Modern Senior Secondary School, Nanganallur, says the bigger tragedy is that bright students who are genuinely interested in serving society are often robbed of the chance of studying medicine because they are unable to pay hefty donations. “Since it is harder in CBSE schools to score as high an aggregate as the state board schools, most CBSE students prefer Engineering over Medicine,” she said.
According to Shanmuga Sundara Pandian, whose daughter Lalitha Rajalakshmi plans to appear for counselling for a medical seat, the system is especially unfair to middleclass families. “I think 195/200 (97.5%) is a very good score. Students will have worked very hard to get here. But if they miss out on a seat, it is unrealistic to expect middle class parents to spend lakhs on donation,” said Pandian.
“Private medical colleges charge Rs 40 lakh as capitation fee in addition to the fee. By the end of an MBBS course, a parent shells out close to Rs 1 crore. Who is ready to pay that much? Even though students may be very bright, it is merely a dream for middle-class families to be able to let their child study medicine,” he said.
— With inputs from
Lakshmi Kumaraswami
LAMENT DECLINE IN MEDICAL SERVICES
Patients will stand to suffer if stringent law not in place: Docs
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Chennai: Terrible. That’s how the fraternity of doctors feels about the impact of capitation fees on medical education. The death of merit has led to a progressive decline in medical services, say most experts in the field. In days ahead, unless suitable legislative amendments are brought, the patient is the one most likely to suffer, goes the consensus.
“It’s a catastrophe waiting to happen,” says surgical gastroenterologist Dr R Surendran, who is the head of department in Chennai’s Government Stanley Medical College and Hospital. “What adds to the problem of quality is that many of the private medical colleges don’t have patients or faculty. In a few years, we would have doctors who can’t even measure blood pressure,” he said.
Many of his colleagues agree. “When you pay capitation fees to join a medical college, you make a wrong start,” says Dr George Thomas, editor, Indian Journal of Medical Ethics.
“Though many things can be bought with money in India, commercialising health and education leaves us with no hope. Doctors unlike professionals are treated well in the society. No doctor
starves for food. Every doctor is treated with respect by patients. They surrender themselves with hope of cure. And for this social obligation, every doctor should stick by ethics,” he says.
Given the autonomy which deemed universities currently enjoy, anyone with 60% marks in Class XII and enough cash can get an MBBS seat. To make matters worse, the country is estimated to have a requirement for two lakh additional doctors every year but is able to produce only 32,000 MBBS graduates.
With the demand-supply gap being so vast, the government is seen as reluctant to impose restrictions that may slow down the growth of the medical education sector. However, some are of the view that too much is being made of the issue since students who pay capitation fees are eventually forced to raise their standards in keeping with the needs of the profession.
“There are meritorious students in medical colleges who underperform because they don’t like the stream while some who have paid have the eagerness to learn,” sayS former vice-chancellor of Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University K Anandakannan.
LEGAL DOOR
Donation business thrives on lack of clear-cut norms
A Subramani | TNN
Chennai: It is impossible to bottle the capitation fee genie in the absence of clear-cut punitive norms, say jurists. Judgments at various levels notwithstanding, the mode of regulating or penalising a privately-run educational institute which demands or accepts capitation fee remains unclear, they say.
States such as Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have enacted laws to ban educational donations based on Supreme Court judgments, but action against offenders can only be in the nature of recommendations to central agencies. The Tamil Nadu Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Collection of Capitation Fee) Act 1992, for instance, contains directions for educational institutions to maintain financial data, academic records, etc, but does not talk about punishment if guidelines are flouted, pointed out a senior jurist. “If an institution is found guilty, the state can only recommend to the All India Council for Technical Education or Medical Council of India or University Grants Commission for appropriate action, which includes disaffiliation,” S Prabakaran, president of Tamil Nadu Advocates’ Association (TNAA) said.
The mushrooming of private colleges over the past decade and the government’s increasingly hands-off approach to higher education is seen to be the prime factors. A jurist said the UGC makes noises once in a while but never carries out genuine inspection to verify infrastructure amenities of institutions and examine admission or fee-related issues in depth. Rarely, if ever, are complaints or petitions against educational malpractices entertained by state administrations or legal forums.
One exceptional case cited in TN is that of a student named Sasikala. Daughter of a vegetable vendor from Pappireddypatti in Salem, Sasikala had enough marks to be admitted for MBBS under the government quota. Still, a city-based college denied her a seat in 1989-90 as she was unable to cough up a few lakhs as capitation fee. The girl moved Madras High Court. However, Sasikala could not get any interim relief and a whole academic year went by even as the case was pending in the court. In 1990-91 she got a medical seat at the Chengalpattu Government Medical College, and she decided to join it. The private college, utilizing the opportunity, opted for an out-ofcourt settlement and offered a decent sum as compensation if she withdrew the case. The case was withdrawn.
A couple of years ago, another student, though admitted under the government quota which entails payment of only the state-stipulated fee, was similarly unable to join a private medical college as the management demanded an additional Rs 5 lakh. The student had no option except to approach courts as the admission deadline was to expire the next day.
A bench, specially constituted by then chief justice A P Shah, heard the matter and warned the college of severe action if it denied admission to the student. The college, which neither admitted making a demand for capitation fees nor offered seat to the student, did relent in the end and let the student in.
The bench used the opportunity to lay down exhaustive guidelines on publication of marks, merit lists and fee details on the college website. It also stipulated that fees should be collected only through demand drafts or cheques.
Notwithstanding such intervention by courts, donations continue to be charged freely. Now in order to help tighten norms, Prabakaran said the TNAA would soon file a writ petition to direct the statutory oversight committees to bring deemed universities also under their wings, both for admission and fee structure regulation.
subramani.a@timesgroup.com
Cancel licences of tainted univs if found guilty: TN
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi/Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has instructed the health department not to hesitate to send recommendations for cancellation of the licences of two deemed universities — Sri Ramachandra University (SRU) and Shree Balaji Medical College — to the Medical Council of India (MCI) and the Union Grants Commission (UGC) if they are guilty.
Officials of these universities were caught on camera asking for capitation fees of Rs 20-40 lakh, in violation of the Tamil Nadu Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Collection Capitation Fee) Act 1992 and Supreme Court rulings against capitation fee.
State health minister M R K Panneerselvam also promised action against the two colleges, one of which is run by a party colleague and central minister. Officials in the HRD ministry pointed out that capitation fee was banned by both the Supreme Court as well as the Tamil Nadu government. Although medical education does not come under the HRD ministry, officials said action could be taken through coordinated action between the HRD and health ministries. At the HRD end, the UGC can withdraw the deemed university status of these institutes.
MoS health Dinesh Trivedi told TOI that “capitation fee introduces corruption early in a medical student’s life”. Having paid a huge amount to enter medical college, doctors are tempted to lower their moral guard when they start to work in order to recover the amount. Trivedi said, “This is a shocking expose. Not just medical standards go for a six, but corruption among the medical fraternity starts from here.”
“Merit is completely overlooked as poor students can never pay up. Not only the health ministry but also the Income Tax department must deal with such cases sternly,” he said
Medical Council of India chairman Dr Ketan Desai said, “Taking money against medical seats is an unpardonable act. If council members agree after going through all documents provided to us by TOI, we will order an inquiry into the scandal. Since the colleges in question are deemed universities, we will recommend to the UGC to derecognise them.”
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