The High Court of Madras has asked the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) not to take any action against the institutions not subscribing to e-journals. The order was passed by the Justice V. K. Sharma on petitions by the Association of Management of Coimbatore Anna University Affiliated Colleges, Erode and the Consortium of Self Financing Professional Arts and Science Colleges in Tamil Nadu, Chennai.

            The AICTE had earlier insisted on a subscription between Rs.13 to 15 lakh from engineering colleges in India to a particular foreign company for e-books as a condition to set up new institutions, extension of approval of existing ones, additional courses and additional intake.

            In fact, AICTE had issued a fresh approval process handbook for 2012-13, which included new conditions that were arbitrary in nature. The council had increased the number of journals to 725 all of a sudden, that too at short notice, for this academic year, the petitioners contended, adding that self financing institutions would definitely find it difficult to subscribe to the same.