PATIALA: : Higher fee structure in Punjab medical and dental colleges has kept away many medical students to get admission in Punjab dental colleges. 216 seats out of 980 are still vacant in Punjab. There are 11 private dental colleges and two government dental colleges in the state.

All 80 seats in Government dental college in Patiala and Amritsar and 40 seats at Christian Dental College, Ludhiana were filled.

The seats vacant are in management quota and left out NRI special management quota in private colleges.

The fee structure in private medical colleges in Punjab had enhanced three times in Medical colleges and more than five times in dental colleges.

During ongoing counselling of MBBS and BDS in August 2007 Punjab Govt. under the undue pressure of the private medical/dental colleges had increased fee for management quota MBBS Course from 100000 to Rs. 300000/- per annum and in BDS Course from Rs. 55000 to Rs. 230000/- P.A. and BAMS/BHMS Courses from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 110000/- P.A. this huge increase had done by the Punjab Govt. only to please the private medical/Dental colleges.

The BDS doctors are in great demand in abroad especially in UK, US, Canada and Australia, said Bikramjit Singh, Managing Director of Alpha Beta Immigration and Educational services. He said that in Punjab there was huge difference of fee structure in MBBS/BDS colleges and Punjab students have been preferring colleges other than Punjab. He said that BDS course can be done in south India by giving fee Rs. 100000 in most of colleges and Punjab students opting for it.

The hike in fee structure in Punjab medical colleges were criticized by many quarters and deserving students have left seats in MBBS and BDS colleges.

Many writ petitions are pending in Punjab and Haryana high court challenging the fee hike notification of Punjab government of 2007. The Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal is alos not happy with the working of the department and he has also expressed and conveyed his unhappiness to the minister in charge regarding hike in fee structure. The chief minister has intervened in the working of the department on two times. First he had form committee on revision of fee structure bypassing the minister and later backtracked on it, secondly he has formed the committee headed by Dr. JS Bajaj to give report for the restructuring of Government medical and dental colleges according to guidelines of medical council of India.

Meanwhile the work in Punjab medical and education department was worse hit as the principal secretary Jagjit Puri was transferred on September 26 following the controversial official memo regarding BDS counselling. The new incumbent Rakesh Singh has gone on long leave after joining the department and it added fuel to the theory that everything is not well in the department.