GDC Bemina Students Allege Unfair Examination Fee Charges, Seek Cluster University Portal Reforms

Srinagar: Students of Government Degree College (GDC) Bemina on Friday alleged that they are being charged examination fees for subjects they are not eligible to appear in, and called on Cluster University Srinagar to introduce reforms in its examination fee collection system.

The students claimed that the university’s online examination portal generates fees for all registered subjects, even when a student has not qualified in the internal assessment required to appear in the end-semester examination. Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel

Students Raise Concerns Over Examination Portal

According to the students, only those who pass the internal assessment in a subject are allowed to sit for the corresponding university examination.

However, they alleged that the examination portal does not take this eligibility into account and instead requires payment for every subject.

“If a fourth-semester student has four subjects and clears only two internal examinations, the student should be required to pay examination fees only for those two eligible papers. Instead, the portal charges fees for all four subjects. Later, when admit cards are issued, students are permitted to appear only in the subjects they have qualified for, despite having paid for every paper,” a group of students told PTI.

Students Call the Practice Unfair

The students described the system as unfair and said it places an unnecessary financial burden on students, especially those from economically weaker backgrounds.

They argued that examination fees should only be charged for papers in which a student is eligible to appear.

Concerns Over Skill Course Fee

The students also questioned the fee charged for the Skill Course, alleging that they are required to pay around ₹500, despite being told that the actual cost of the course is much lower.

They claimed that some teachers had privately acknowledged the issue but that no corrective action had been taken.

Demands for Reform

The students said the issue affects not only current students but also backlog candidates and future batches.

They demanded that Cluster University Srinagar:

• Refund examination fees collected for subjects in which students were not eligible to appear.
• Modify the online examination portal so that fees are generated only for eligible papers after internal assessment results are declared.
• Make the examination fee collection system more transparent and student-friendly.

“The examination fee system should be transparent and based on actual eligibility. Students should not be compelled to pay for examinations they are not permitted to sit,” the students said.

At the time of filing this report, there was no official response from Cluster University Srinagar regarding the students’ allegations.

Suggested Graphics

Graphic 1: Students’ Key Concerns