RTMNU imposes 7% annual fee hike, adds Rs 1,200 computer training charge

Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University (RTMNU) has increased tuition and other fees by 7 percent for the 2026-27 academic session. The university has issued a notification with the revised fees. The hike will affect mainly students taking admission in the first semester this year.

The notification states that fees for new students will now rise by 7 percent every year. Another change has drawn questions from both students and teachers: students in courses where computers are not a core subject will be charged an additional Rs 1,200 in the name of computer training.

The university's Academic Council and Management Council had already decided in 2024 that fees for courses run by all affiliated and constituent colleges, academic departments and recognised campuses would rise by 7 percent every year. The rule has been in effect since the 2024-25 session, and the 2026-27 increase is the next step under that same decision.

Students already in the second, third and fourth semesters will continue to pay the fee that was applicable when they took admission, so the hike will not affect them. The university has also clarified that no charge beyond what is listed in the notification and its annexure will be levied until a further decision is taken.

The decision on the computer training fee was taken at a meeting of the Dean Board on July 29. Students in arts, commerce and other courses where computer is not the main subject will be charged Rs 1,200 as a computer training fee, while students in courses where computer is the main subject have been exempted from this fee.

This is where students and teachers are raising questions, asking why the fee burden is being placed on students when computer is not their subject. Senate member Adv. Manmohan Bajpai said the fee cannot be called excessive where colleges actually provide computer training to arts and commerce students to build their skills, but it is not right to impose the fee at colleges that do not provide such training. He said the university should look into the matter seriously.