PANJIM: In a probable attempt to increase the number of students at Shri Kamaxidevi Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, and Shree Rayeshwar Institute of Engineering and Information Technology, its management has announced admission fee waiver for toppers.
The announcement comes a day after Goa University (GU) granted affiliation to the two Shiroda-based institutions – run by senior Congress leader Subhash Shirodkar – permitting admissions to the first year professional degree courses of homeopathy and engineering.
The GU had kept admissions to the two colleges in abeyance on finding it was operated for commercial profits, and that it failed to meet basic guidelines set by the All India Council for Technical Education for engineering colleges and the Central Council for Homeopathy for homeopathy institutes.
The central committee also found the faculty members were denied leave, teachers worked overtime at the homeopathy hospital without additional pay, and salaries were not as per the recommended norm. The findings prompted the GU to stall the admissions in June, while it simultaneously also served them the notice to rectify the problems within two weeks only to lift the abeyance on Friday.
Addressing the media on Saturday, Shirodkar conceded, “It had teething problems which are now resolved.” He thereafter announced fee waiver for toppers wherein students achieving 75 per cent and above will get 100 per cent waiver for maximum three students per class.
While those securing 70 per cent and above and 60 per cent and above will get 25 per cent and 10 per cent fee concession respectively. A total of 10 students each will benefit under the two categories.
“This scheme is not because we want to get students but essentially to increase the quality of education. I have seen that many who can get into the Science stream, opt for Commerce, the talent is drained elsewhere and that’s the reason RIET rolled out the plan to promote technical studies,” he said.
The chairman reiterated it had solved the existing problems but also quickly added that students passing out of the two colleges enjoy respectable positions at various multinational companies and related-sectors in India and abroad. “They (students) are national assets. We are contributing to quality and professional human resource,” he said admitting that its institutions indeed received fewer enrollments in the past.
The Directorate of Technical Education will start the second round of admissions to all professional colleges on July 27. Whereas admissions to these institutions will begin from Monday, as DTE has to complete the first round of admissions.
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