Telangana Engineering Colleges Fee: TAFRC Submits Report To Govt

The Telangana Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee (TAFRC) has submitted a report to the State government on fixing fees for engineering colleges.

It may be recalled that the Telangana government constituted a high-level committee in July this year to revise parameters for fixing fees in private unaided professional colleges after TAFRC flagged that the proposals for the 2025-28 block period were inconsistent with parameters laid out by the Supreme Court and High Court.

The committee formulated its recommendations after studying norms followed in other States and adhering to the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court and High Court. The report was subsequently submitted to the Telangana government by TAFRC.

Noting the recurring pattern of engineering colleges submitting fee hike proposals each year, the Telangana High Court in July rapped TAFRC for delaying recommendations until after counselling and admissions were completed. As a result, colleges resorted to legal action, the court observed.

Around 11 colleges had moved the High Court, challenging Government Order (GO 26), which stated that fees charged during the last block period would continue for 2025-26. The court also questioned the delay in inspections and criticized the late formation of the 15-member high-level committee. On July 11, it directed TAFRC to decide on the fee hike representations submitted by colleges and forward proposals to the government within six weeks.

After the high-level committee submitted its report, the Telangana government reportedly issued orders announcing changes to the parameters for fixing fees in engineering colleges.

Currently, fees are determined on the basis of facilities such as labs and libraries, along with faculty quality. Under the new rules, additional criteria have been added, including student attendance, performance, the use of facial-recognition technology, Aadhaar-authenticated payments, and whether institutions encourage research and innovation.

Once the report is submitted to the court, a decision will be taken on whether the revised fee structure should apply in the current academic year or from the next.