The Maharashtra state government has approved a complete academic fee waiver for girls from families with a total income of Rs 8 lakh or less. The state will reimburse the amount. The move is expected to boost girls' enrollment in higher education.

Chandrakant Patil, Maharashtra's higher and technical education minister, made the announcement on Friday during the Joint Board of Vice-Chancellors (JBVC) meeting. Currently, there is a 50% academic fee waiver in the same category, which has now been extended to 100%. Patil stated, "Universities should work towards ensuring that more girls take admission to higher education courses across various fields," and instructed VCs to run special campaigns for this purpose, as well as emphasise the importance of universities declaring results on time.

Governor of Maharashtra, Ramesh Bais, who chaired the JBVC in his capacity of Chancellor to all state universities also urged all VCs to declare results on time. He said, “This is important to ensure that students do not miss out on their academic years or job opportunities, due to delay in results.” Last year too, the governor had reprimanded universities for delayed results. He had said that VCs will be held accountable for the delay in declaration of results and dispensation of mark-sheets.