E-Paper
Unaided educational institutions fail to display fees ahead of admissions, FRA assures action
As per section 14 (c)(4) of the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act 2015, every unaided professional educational is required to display course-wise fees approved by the authority both in Marathi and English.
PUNE: As per section 14 (c)(4) of the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act 2015, every unaided professional educational institution recognised by the fee regulatory authority is required to display course-wise fees approved by the authority both in Marathi and English on its official noticeboard as well as website. However, several renowned educational institutions in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad have failed to comply, raising concerns among students and parents ahead of the 2025-26 academic year admission process.
“Institutes have been repeatedly informed about their obligation to publish the fee structure. Yet, many of them have deliberately chosen not to comply. This is a complete violation of the law and an injustice to thousands of students,” said Kalpesh Yadav, joint secretary of Yuva Sena. With the first round of the admission process through the Common Entrance Test (CET) nearing announcement of results, students and parents are finding it difficult to make informed decisions in the absence of transparent fee information. “This information is essential for students to plan their finances and make decisions without last minute pressure or rushes,” Yadav said.
Yadav has submitted a detailed letter to Arjun Chikhale, secretary of the fee regulatory authority, demanding immediate and strict action against such educational institutions under the relevant legal provisions. In the letter, Yadav has demanded that immediate action be initiated under section 20 of the 2015 Act against all institutions that have failed to publish the fee regulatory authority fee structure for the academic year 2025–26 on their notice boards and websites. “This is not just a legal obligation, but a matter of basic transparency and fairness in the admission process,” Yadav emphasised.
Responding to the demand, Chikhale said, “We have already issued a statewide notice on June 26 clearly instructing institutions to follow the legal requirement. I am assuring a report will be sought in this regard and appropriate action will be taken within a week.”
Abhijit Khare, an applicant, said, “The new CET rules are already confusing, and now these institutes are not displaying their fee structures. How are we supposed to apply without knowing the amount? We need to plan accordingly before applying to any college. If we get selected in any round and later find out that the fees are beyond our affordability, what are we supposed to do? We can’t cancel the admission once a seat is allotted, and under the new system, cancellation disqualifies us from participating in further rounds.”
Namrata Jagtap, a parent, said, “My daughter scored 89%, and we have asked D Y Patil Akurdi Institute several times about the fee structure. They kept telling us that they would inform us but till today, they haven’t responded. In previous years, we had the option to cancel the admission after applying, but the new rules are inflexible and do not allow that anymore. After all the CAP rounds, only the institute-level round remains. If we don’t know the fees for the management quota, how are we supposed to decide whether to take admission now or wait for the last round? It is very frustrating for us.”
The issue is expected to gain further attention from authorities, especially as the admission season progresses across Maharashtra.
