Students to intensify protest over NIFT fee hike

Peeved over the hike in annual fees at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Gandhinagar, a cross-section of students today decided to take their ongoing stir to the next level from Monday.
"Students across 15 centres of NIFT, including Gandhinagar, will be intensifying agitation to register their protest against the fee hike by institute," a member of the NIFT-G students body said.
Some of the students have been holding protests against the increase since the last three-four days.
NIFT has effected a ten percent raise in the annual fees, from Rs 1,00,000 to Rs 1,10,000, Director General NIFT Gandhinagar Prem Kumar Gera said in an e-mail reply to PTI.

"The hike in fees, taking place after 2011, is to cover the increase in NIFT expenditures. Since all students (existing and new-comers) will take benefit from NIFT, the raise has been (effected) on fees collected from all students," he said.
A NIFT official said on condition of anonymity that students paying Rs 50,000 per semester will now have to pay Rs 55,000 per semester.

"NIFT has introduced one-time examination fee of Rs 2,000 from 2012, while hiking the library fee by Rs 1,000. The mediclaim charged from students has also been increased by Rs 750, as the cost of insurance has shot up in market", the official said.

He said the Union Cabinet has approved block grants till 2011-12 for managing the affairs of NIFT, being operated under the aegis of the Ministry of Textile.
"NIFT has to be run from the fees collected. The fees here are the lowest when compared with similar other institutes like National Institute of Design (NID), Footwear Design and Development Institute (FDDI) in government sector", he claimed.