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SAITM students stuck with Rs1.3m question
The government and the Kotelawala Defence University authorities are looking into the various grievances of SAITM students, most notably the payment of fees to KDU, and will follow the university’s policies on the matter, a senior government official said.
“Issues relating to fees to SAITM is something that is not under the purview of the Defence Ministry, however we looked into the matter as best we could, because we too want the education of these students to go ahead unhindered,” said the Secretary of Defence, Kapila Waidyaratne.
Even though all the students who were at the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine were set to be absorbed to KDU with an amendment to the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University Act in June with Parliamentary approval, many of the SAITM students say they have been left in the lurch with no clear guidelines on how the their transfer to the new institute is being affected.
Several students who wished to remain anonymous said, with the Defence, Health and Higher Education Ministries all involved in the solution they presented to SAITM students, there is general confusion about who should be approved to deal with the grievances of the students.
Eight students who had received scholarships during the tenure of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa to study at SAITM have been admitted to KDU without any fee being levied but others have been asked to pay.
“The fourth and fifth batches were told at their KDU interview that they would have to pay the fees in full, which amount to Rs1.38 million a year, although these students have only clinical training to do. Clinical training is provided at government hospitals free of-charge. And it is unfair in general to expect people who have already paid to do so again,” SAITM students said.
“However, we don’t blame KDU as this is their standard procedure and it is unfair to expect them to bear the costs. Our protest is against the government. They gave us an ill-thought out, half solution, and now shy away from the matter,” they added.
They alleged that the Higher Education Minister had not looked into the modalities of the issue but passed it onto KDU.
“The President is the only person who can intervene to bring us justice now, and we have written numerous letters requesting a meeting. However, nothing concrete has been provided so far,’’ the students said.