DU to hike UG fees with charges towards EWS support fund, university facilities

NEW DELHI : The Delhi University (DU) has decided to raise fees for its undergraduate courses from the academic session 2022-23 by introducing charges under new heads such as for varsity facilities and economically weaker section (EWS) support fund and revising some other components. The university has added new sections to the fee structure like University Facilities and Services Charges, Economically Weaker Section Support University Fund and University Student Welfare Fund.

Besides this, the DU has also increased the charge under University Development Fund from Rs 600 to Rs 900. A Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) executive has estimated that the increase in the annual fee for a student will be around Rs 1,000. However, the university has said the fee hike will not be to that extent.

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In a notification issued on July 26, the DU said the restructuring has been done to rationalise fees for admissions across various colleges of the university and to ensure uniformity in various heads of expenditure. The varsity has also informed that the new fee structure will be implemented from the academic session 2022-23. According to the university, there is no change in the tuition fee and Delhi University Student Union (DUSU) fund. Meanwhile, certain portions of the fee are to be decided by the colleges. These are College Student Welfare Fund, College Development Fund and College Facilities and Service Charge.

A DU official told PTI that a new section -- EWS Support University Fund-- has been added to the fee structure. Under this section, a student will have to pay Rs 100 annually. "This is a new addition and the fund collected under this head will be used by the university for the welfare of the economically weaker section students," Director South Campus Prakash Singh said. There is no overall big hike in the fee, Singh claimed. "We have just organised it. There is no big change. Similar money was collected from students but now we have just added sections to specify to organise it," he said.

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A college principal, meanwhile, said new sections like University Facilities and Services Charges have been added. "The section was not among the fee components earlier and now the university will charge Rs 500 under this head. Colleges also charge for using their facilities and services, like lab equipment," he said on the condition of anonymity. The new fee structure is to be approved by the governing body of every college. "The university will decide how much they have to be charged. The fee will increase to a certain amount," he said.

DUTA executive Aanand Prakash said the varsity earlier used to charge Rs 600 towards the University Development Fund, now they have increased the amount to Rs 900. "Besides this, new sections have been added. The fee will go up by a minimum of Rs 1,000. After the university hike, the college will also restructure the fee and this will further increase the fee. I don't understand why the university is feels the need to charge for the EWS fund when every college has the provision of charging students under this head," he said.