Undoubtedly Government medical colleges are preferred over private medical colleges for better exposure, huge number of patients, better teachers & colleagues and most importantly less fees. In many states, government medical colleges charge Rs 9,000-40,000 annually but Maharashtra, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand charge over Rs 1 lakh.

Maharashtra is among the five most expensive states for medical aspirants who want to study MBBS at a government medical college. In the last five years the fees structure in Maharashtra's government medical colleges has seen a hike and fees have gone up by over 50%.

While All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) charge just Rs 1,628 and Rs 7,620, in Maharashtra's civic- and government-run colleges, the annual tuition fees is Rs 94,400, Rs 5,000 as development fees and the remaining as library, admission and hostel charges. However, this was not the case ten years ago when the cumulative annual fees was around Rs 10,000 for several years.

Around 2010, it was decided by the state government to increase fees by 10% every year, said former director, Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER), Dr Pravin Shingare. "The annual fee for government engineering colleges was around Rs 40,000 then, and the medical education minister decided that it cannot be on the lower side for MBBS, where the state spends more. It was, therefore, decided to increase fees by 10% every year. But the fee-paying population in our state's colleges is only 25% and it has never been opposed," said Shingare. He added that 65% of the state's budget for government medical colleges goes in the salary component.

Sudha Shenoy, a parent representative, highlighted that though the governments fees are not as high as compared to private colleges, the students from open category feel the pinch."Several newer quotas have been introduced over the years, shrinking seats in the open category. Students from the other categories pay a fraction of the fees, which is also refunded by the state under various schemes. We have a higher number of seats in government colleges compared to other states or central universities. Hence, revenue should be higher from the total intake," she said.