Apex court nod for common MBBS entrance test

The Supreme Court on Monday paved the way for implementing the Medical Council of India's (MCI) notification providing for a common entrance test for undergraduate medical courses leading to the award of MBBS degrees.

An apex court bench of Justice R.V. Raveendran and Justice A.K. Patnaik, while giving the go ahead to the MCI, said that anyone aggrieved by thenotification can challenge it in court.

"If you (MCI) think you are independent and don't require any approval from the centre, then you can go ahead with its implementation and if you think you need approval from the government, then go to it (government)," the bench said.

The court further told the MCI that if it has already obtained the approval of the health ministry for issuing the notification providing for commonentrance test for undergraduate medical courses, then it could go ahead with its implementation.

The MCI on October 21, 2010 issued a notificationproviding for common entrance test for undergraduate medical courses all over the country. However, this notification was kept in abeyance in the face of stiff opposition by the Tamil Nadu government. 

The state government subsequently obtained a stay against the notification from the Madras High Court.

The apex court said that it could not continue hearing the matter. It said it will not say anything in the matter and if the apex body regulating medical education in the country thinks that it can implement its notification, then it can go ahead and do so.

source:http://indiaedunews.net/Medical/Apex_court_nod_for_common_MBBS_entrance_test_13651/

CAG to submit audit report against 25 private schools

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday directed the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to submit its audit report on 25 elite private schools that had complained of facing a financial burden because of having to pay teachers higher salaries recommended by the 6th Pay Commission.

Justcice A.K. Sikri and Justice Siddharth Mridul said, "CAG will have to submit its audit report by March 18. The Delhi government grievance department should also give us the details of complaint they have received from parents regarding fee hike issue in a year or two."

The court order came while hearing a petition filed by social jurist lawyer Ashok Agarwalla. 

Agarwalla said, "In clear violation of SchoolEducation Act, many of these schools did not offer 20 percent reservation to children from Economically Weaker Sections."

Challenging the schools claim, Agarwalla said Delhi's private schools that had complained they were reeling under the burden of having to payteachers higher salaries are totally wrong. 

A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), however, said they used the Pay Commission as an alibi to fatten themselves.

The auditor held that 25 elite private schools passed on the burden of implementing the recommendations of the 6th Pay Commission to parents, without drawing on the cash reserves they had accumulated by not implementing the staff salariesprescribed by the government.

The money collected from parents on the ground of the Pay Commission's burden was transferred to their societies and trusts. Schools which claimed to be making losses didn't hesitate to acquire expensive cars, the report said.

The indictment gets more serious as CAG found that schools paid salaries to fictitious employees and collected money under various heads in an unauthorized way.

The CAG report, finalized last month, also found that while some contributed to theprovident fund of fewer employees (National Victor School), others such as Amity International made contribution for more employees than those actually working. Sixth Pay Commission arrears were paid to staff not enrolled as employees.

CAG has also severely criticized the Directorate of Education of Delhi government for failing to monitor these lapses.

CAG had audited the accounts of 25 schools -- Mount Carmel, ASN School, Sachdeva, Mother Divine, Sadhu Vaswani, Ryan International, St Mary, Birla Vidya Niketan, Air Force Bal Bharti, GD Salwan, National Victor, Amity International, DPS-RK Puram, GD Goenka, Maharaja Agrasen, Convent of Jesus and Mary, JD Tytler, Sardar Patel, Vasant Valley, Ramjas Public School, St Xavier's, Frank Anthony, Presentation Convent, Modern School and Summer Fields School.

As for illegal transfer of money, CAG pointed out nine cases. Sardar Patel paid Rs.2.33 crore as usage charge to Gujarat Education Society for using its assets, Birla Vidya Niketan (BVN) paid Rs.5.23 crore as rent to Birla Academy of Art and Culture and Rs 2.5 crore on repair and maintenance.

source:http://indiaedunews.net/Delhi/CAG_to_submit_audit_report_against_25_private_schools_13652/

Court questions university on 'illegal' study centres

New Delhi:  The Delhi High Court on Wednesday questioned the University Grants Commission (UGC) and  the Sikkim Manipal University on allegations that the private varsity was illegally running 52 study centres in   Delhi.

The division bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna also issued orders to issue notices to the respondents UGC, the All India Council for Technical Education(AICTE) and the Sikkim Manipal University. The notices are returnable by March 15.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by Bhupendra Chaturvedi against the private university, alleging that it was not authorized by the UGC to open campuses outside the territorial jurisdiction of Sikkim.

"The university has 52 unauthorized study centres in the national capital alone," said senior advocate Arvind Nigam appearing for Chaturvedi.

The UGC, through its notifications issued in April and June 2009, had disapproved of the Sikkim Manipal University's move to open centres outside its campus, he said. IANS

source:http://www.indiaedunews.net/Universities/Court_questions_university_on_%27illegal%27_study_centres_13454/

Raju seeks review of SC order cancelling bail

New Delhi, Nov 9 (PTI) Scam-tainted Satyam Computer founder B Ramalinga Raju has approached the Supreme Court seeking a review of its order cancelling the bail granted to him by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in the multi-crore rupee accounting fraud.

The petition was filed against the October 26, 2010 order by which a bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Deepak Verma had set aside the order of the high court granting bail to Raju along with his brother Rama Raju and four others.

The apex court had allowed the appeal of CBI and cancelled the bail granted to B Ramalinga Raju and five others and had asked them to surrender by November 10.

The supreme court had observed that the fraud eroded "corporate credibility of the nation".

"Ordinarily this Court would be slow in cancelling the bail already granted by the High Court, but in extraordinary facts and circumstances of these cases, we are of the considered view that the impugned orders passed by the High Court granting bail to the respondents, cannot be sustained in law and the same are accordingly set aside," the bench had said. .