Despite mounting pressures and protests from all quarters, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has refused to come down on the proposal to reimburse only part of the fee for BC students in all professional colleges.

“There is a limit for every scheme. We can’t go on bearing the entire burden. If the tuition fee in the professional colleges is increased to Rs 1 lakh, the government cannot bear the entire amount. One has to understand the limitations of the government,” Kiran said in an interview to a television channel.

The chief minister said the government would adopt a rational fee structure that would be mutually beneficial to all the sections. “We cannot take irresponsible decisions just because the opposition parties behave irresponsibly by launching agitations,” he said.

However, Kiran said the government would take into consideration any constructive suggestion made by the ministers in his cabinet. “After all, it is going to be a collective decision,” he said.