Nagpur: The issue of a three-fold increase in fees for BCA and BBA courses figured prominently during the Senate meeting of Nagpur University on Friday, with senior senate member Rajesh Bhoyar questioning the steep hike, the scholarship process, and transparency in decision-making.Bhoyar demanded a probe into the matter, following which Vice-Chancellor Manali Kshirsagar directed that a fact-finding committee be constituted to examine the issue.Raising the matter in the Senate, Bhoyar pointed out that circulars related to fee structures of academic courses are generally issued between July and October. However, the circular announcing a three-fold hike in BCA and BBA fees was issued as early as May 2025, which he said was not in line with established norms.Bhoyar further stated, according to a letter from the All India Council for Technical Education, the fee structure of the previous academic session should remain applicable for the 2025-26 academic year. Despite this, the university issued a circular in May 2025 implementing the revised and higher fee structure, which he alleged was in violation of the council’s directives.He also questioned what he described as inconsistencies in the decision-making process. If certain decisions required approval from the central or state govt, Bhoyar asked why other decisions taken in the same meeting did not require similar approvals. According to him, such inconsistencies raised questions over the transparency of the administrative process.Responding to the concerns, Kshirsagar said the decision regarding the fee structure had been taken by the then Board of Deans and the Fee Determination Committee. She said several colleges had already processed scholarship applications of students based on the circular, and some had even received scholarships, making it difficult to completely reverse the earlier decision.Kshirsagar clarified that students receiving scholarships had not faced any additional financial burden, as the increased cost was borne by the govt. She also informed the Senate that some colleges had not collected the increased fees from students belonging to the general category.During the meeting, Bhoyar also raised objections to the cancellation of a decision allowing older PhD scholars to submit their theses. The Academic Council had earlier permitted such students to submit their dissertations and the university had issued Guideline 33/2025 in this regard.However, after opposition from Senate members in a previous meeting, the university cancelled the decision on December 16, 2025, and issued a circular.Bhoyar argued that just as formal guidelines were issued to allow submission of theses, similar guidelines should also be issued to formally revoke the earlier decision.
