Costs may go up by over Rs 1 lakh under new programme

For thousands of students who come to Delhi University from across the country, the new four-year undergraduate programme is going to translate into a financial setback. Mallica Joshi reports.

For thousands of students who come to Delhi University from across the country, the new four-year undergraduate programme is going to translate into a financial setback.

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While the annual fee charged by DU colleges is much lesser as compared to the fee for private colleges, an additional year will no doubt be a burden for a parent with modest means.

If the cost of living alone is anything to go by, a parent living outside Delhi will end up spending at least Rs 1,14,400 more for their child stay in Delhi. The figures used for this report by HT have been collected by conducting a survey among a number of students living in the North Campus.

This does not include the extra Rs 15,000-Rs 30,000 they will end up paying as annual college fee.

While the teachers have been protesting against the dilution of courses and the undemocratic way in which the FYUP has been passed, the parents are concerned about the increased costs.

“Rs 1.5 lakh may seem like a small amount to many but for a number of us, it is a huge expenditure that is going to be a huge setback,” said Manish Jha, a resident of Patna, whose daughter is planning to apply to Delhi University this year.

The factor of increased costs has also raised the apprehension that parents will pull out girls within three years — with two-year diploma or three-year bachelor’s degree — to avoid extra expenditure and deprive them of an opportunity to complete a four-year honours degree.