Mumbai: Engineering student denied exam entry over unpaid fees

MNS workers confront the principal of the college; (right) Shah and Anchor Kutchhi Engineering College. Pics/Rajesh Gupta

A second-year engineering student was barred from taking her exam because of unpaid college fees. Shravani Shewale, 19, a student of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Science programme at Shah & Anchor Kutchhi Engineering College in Chembur, was reportedly denied entry despite her father's requests for assistance
under the ‘Mulina Mofat Shikshan Yojana'.

According to her father Deepak, the college demanded payment of Rs 1.5 lakh, despite multiple requests for government facilities. He stated that he provided the necessary documentation for her to avail of benefits under the scheme, but the college refused to accept it.

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"My daughter is eligible for the free education scheme introduced by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in July, which aims to support girls pursuing higher education," Deepak said. "I requested the college to provide these facilities, but they have consistently denied them."

On September 19, the college informed Shewale that she could not sit for the exam until the fees were paid. Deepak claimed that he also promised in writing to pay the fees within ten days, but the college did not accept his statement. "The college told me that my daughter was admitted through the CAP (Centralised Admission Process) round, and therefore, she is not eligible for the government facilities due to her admission status," he added.

The situation escalated when MNS workers, led by Mauli Thorave, intervened after being alerted about the denial of entry to the college. They threatened college authorities, resulting in Shewale being allowed to take her exam.

Thorave criticised the college, stating, "The college is harassing students instead of providing the government facilities under the scheme. This is a serious matter. We won't allow any student's future to be jeopardised."

The incident has raised concerns about the implementation of government schemes aimed at supporting students, highlighting the need for better communication and cooperation between educational institutions and the authorities.

Authorities unavailable

The college management, principal, and teachers remained unavailable for comment, till the time of going to press, despite repeated calls and messages.

The scheme

The state government started the Mulina Mofat Sikshan Yojana on July 5, for girls to be provided with a 100 per cent grant for higher education and free education in over 800 courses including medicine, technical programmes and engineering. Girls whose parents' income is less than R8 lakh per annum can benefit. This scheme applies only to professional courses and is not for students of traditional branches like arts, commerce and science.