A Group of Ministers, headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, gave its approval to the draft of HRD Ministry's bill that stipulates severe punishment including fine for institutions or imprisonment for administrators in case of charging capitation fee from the students. The Bill to check malpractices in educational institutions seeks to consider such practices as criminal or civil offences depending on the nature of the crime. As per the bill, if an institute gives certain promises in its prospectus, but charges capitation fee from a number of students, then such practices should be considered as criminal offences. In such cases, the guilty administrator will be imprisoned up to three years and the institutes may be fined up to Rs 50 lakh. The administrator could be fined also. However, in case of an isolated instance of malpractice involving just one or two students, the offences can be considered as civil offences. In such cases, the Institutes can be slapped fines.