Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act, 2015
No: 28 Dated: Aug, 17 2015
Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act, 2015
ACT No. XXVIII OF 2015
An Act to provide for regulation of admissions and fees by Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions in the State of Maharashtra and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
WHEREAS both Houses of the State Legislature were not in session;
AND WHEREAS the Governor of Maharashtra was satisfied that circumstances existed which rendered it necessary for him to take immediate action to provide for regulation of admissions and fees by Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions in the State of Maharashtra and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto ; and, therefore, promulgated the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Ordinance, 2015 on the 12th May 2015 ;
AND WHEREAS it is expedient to replace the said Ordinance, by an Act of the State legislature, with certain minor modification;
It is hereby enancted in the Sixty-sixth Year of the Republic of India as follows :—
CHAPTER I PRELIMINARY
1. Short title, extent and commencement:- (1) This Act may be called the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act, 2015.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 12th May 2015.
2. Definitions:- In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Admissions Regulating Authority” means the Authority constituted under section 7 for regulating the admissions in Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions and conducting CETs;
(b) “appropriate authority” means the authorities declared by the State or Central Government which approve and regulate the professional courses or educational disciplines;
(c) “Centralized Admission Process (CAP)” means the centralized process of admission carried out by the competent authority through single window system in a transparent manner for admitting the students for various professional courses in educational institutions ;
(d) “Common Entrance Test (CET)” means the entrance test conducted for determination of merit of the candidates by Centralized Admission Process (CAP) for the purpose of admission to professional education courses through a single window system;
(e) “Competent Authority” means the Commissioner of State CET appointed by the Government under section 10, for conducting CET through CAP for the admissions into Private Professional Educational Institutions ;
(f) “Director” means the Director of Higher Education or, of Technical Education or, of Medical Education and Research or, of any other Directorate or Commissioner of any Commissionarate of the State Government, entrusted with the task of supervision of the Private Professional Educational Institution;
(g) “Fees” means the amount fixed as fee which includes tuition fee, library fee, gymkhana fee, examination fee, development fee or amount payable for any curricular or co-curricular activities, laboratory fee, information brochure fee and any other amount collected from the students, by whatsoever name called, and accepted in whichever manner, that is made payable to a Private Professional Educational Institution, for whatever purpose, by any candidate admitted to a professional course at such institution, but excludes any charges payable towards use of any optional hostel accommodation, mess charges and Students Insurance Fees;
(h) “Fees Regulating Authority” means the authority constituted under section 11 for determination and regulation of fee in unaided institutions;
(i) “Foreign Student” means a student who is not a citizen of India;
(j) “Government” or “State Govemment” means the Government of Maharashtra;
(k) “lateral entry” means admission of students in second year of the course against seats as per the guidelines of the appropriate authorities;
(l) “management” means the managing committee or the governing body, by whatever name called, of the Private Professional Educational Institution to which the affairs of such Institution are entrusted and where such affairs are entrusted to any person, by whatever name or designation called, includes such person;
(m) “Minority Educational Institution” means a Private Professional Educational Institution notified as such by the State Government, established and administered for and by the persons belonging to the minority community, domiciled in the State of Maharashtra, having right to do so under clause (1) of article 30 of the Constitution of India;
(n) “Non-Resident Indian (NRI)” means a person who is “not ordinarily resident” under sub-section (6) of section 6 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, and includes a person resident outside India under clause (w) of section 2 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, and also includes his child or ward;
(o) “Person of Indian Origin (PIO)” means a person who is a citizen of a country other than India but who, at any time, was a citizen of India; or in whose case either parent or any grandparent was a citizen of India by virtue of the provisions of Part II of the Constitution of India or under the Citizenship Act, 1955;
(p) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(q) “Private Professional Educational Institution” means any college, school, institute, institution or other body, by whatever name called, conducting any professional course or courses approved or recognized by the appropriate authority and affiliated to any university, but shall not include,—
(i) any such institution established, maintained or administered by the Central Government, any State Government or any local authority;
(ii) institution declared to be a deemed university under section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 ; or
(iii) a university to which the provisions of the University Grants Commission (Establishment and Maintenance of Private Universities) Regulations, 2003 are applicable;
(r) “Professional Education” means any educational course of study declared and notified as such, from time to time by the Government which includes a course leading to the award of an Under Graduate or Post-Graduate degree, diploma, by whatever name called and recognized by the appropriate authority;
(s) “profiteering” means any amount accepted in cash or kind, directly or indirectly which is in excess of the fee approved as per the provisions of this Act;
(t) “regulations” means the regulations framed by the Regulating Authorities;
(u) “Regulating Authority” means the Admissions Regulating Authority under section 7 or the Fees Regulating Authority under section 11, as the case may be ;
(v) “sanctioned intake” means the total number of seats sanctioned or approved by the appropriate authority for admitting candidates in a single academic year in each professional course of study or discipline in a Private Professional Educational Institution at the appropriate level of entry;
(w) “Stake-holders” means the management, the students studying in the respective institution and their parents;
(x) “unaided institution” means Private Professional Educational Institution, which is not receiving aid or grant-in-aid from the Central Government, the State Government or the local authority;
(y) “University” shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (f) of section 2 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.