Opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan has demanded the withdrawal of a Kerala government circular that reportedly allows autonomous, aided and self-financing colleges to increase student intake without prior government approval. He has alleged that the decision was taken under pressure from private college managements.
In a statement on November 8, Vijayan argued that relaxing the approval requirements could weaken government oversight of higher education and encourage the commercialisation of education. He called for the government to reverse the decision and order a comprehensive legal inquiry into the alleged dilution of existing rules.
Vijayan referred to a Higher Education Department circular issued on September 11, which made prior government approval mandatory for introducing new courses and increasing seats in government, aided and autonomous colleges. He alleged that the subsequent relaxation undermined the safeguards established by that directive.
According to Vijayan, reducing regulatory scrutiny could affect the educational rights of ordinary people, particularly students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. He argued that government oversight was necessary to ensure that decisions on college admissions and course expansion were not driven primarily by institutional management interests.
The controversy centres on the extent of government approval required before colleges can expand their intake or introduce additional courses. Vijayan has maintained that the reported change could weaken the state's ability to regulate higher education institutions.
His demand places the revised circular under political scrutiny, with calls for both its withdrawal and a legal examination of how the provisions of the September directive were allegedly diluted.
The government’s response to these demands and the outcome of any proposed inquiry were not established in the supplied report.
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