Patna: The Patna High Court has put an interim stay on the Bihar government’s directive mandating private medical colleges to charge the same fees as government institutions for 50% of their seats. The order, issued by a single bench of Justice Anil Kumar Sinha, also asked the state government and the National Medical Commission (NMC) to submit their replies within six weeks.
The directive in question, dated July 29, instructed all private medical colleges in the state to apply government college-level fee structures to half of their intake from the current academic session. The move drew immediate legal challenge from several institutions, including Lord Buddha Koshi Medical College and Hospital in Saharsa.
During the hearing, the petitioners argued that the government’s order would lead to a significant financial burden. According to them, operating a private medical college incurs an annual expenditure of around Rs 100 crore. Enforcing fee parity on 50% of seats, they said, would drastically reduce their revenue and hinder operations.
The colleges further contended that thousands of employees working in their affiliated hospitals could face job losses if funding gaps were not bridged. In an effort to compensate, they claimed they would be forced to hike fees for the remaining seats, possibly to Rs 1.5 to Rs 2 crore — a cost that would be prohibitive for most students and could drive more of Bihar’s medical aspirants to seek education abroad.
The petitioners also noted that similar matters are currently under consideration in the Supreme Court, and urged the High Court that no final decision be taken at the state level until a verdict is delivered at the national level.
