ooking for a "legitimate" degree in a course of your preference? The Laxmi Nagar area of East Delhi is the place to visit. It's home to several "educational consultancies" that can help you to get certificates for Class 10 and 12, degrees in PhD, BTech, LLB, MBA, MA, MD and MBBS from a range of universities, irrespective of whether it is a regular or distance learning programme. The cost depends on the degree one is keen to acquire. If needed they can even "organise" mark sheets for several examinations at the same time.

Posing as students, these correspondents visited some of these "consultancies" and secretly recorded the discussions with the consultants. Kiran (name changed), said, "If you want to pursue a regular MBA, you have to register with the Mahamaya Technical University in Uttar Pradesh. The degree will cost you Rs 1 lakh per year. If you want to enrol in a distance learning programme, it will cost you Rs 30,000 per year."

Kiran also said that if one does not wish to attend classes in a regular MBA programme, they can get "exemption" and proxy attendance. He takes a "service charge" of Rs 10,000 for this. Kiran listed out several other universities such as Karnataka University and Maharshi Dayanand University (Rohtak, Haryana). "We arrange for both distance and regular programmes. It all depends on your preference," he said.

Another consultancy, which claims to have highly qualified teachers and a competitive environment, told these correspondents that they could arrange for backdated degrees. "If you register within this week, you can get backdated degrees for Class 10, 12 and BA by April 2014 from Manav Bharti University, Jaipur. This will cost you Rs 90,000. If you had cleared Class 10 and 12, the cost would have been Rs 50,000 for the BA," said Rahul (name changed), a consultant.

When asked about classes and examinations, Rahul asked, "Will you be able to give exams for Class 10, 12 and BA in three months?" He also claimed that one would get separate mark sheets for each year. "The whole operation is legal. The mark sheets can also be used for government job applications," Rahul said.

When asked if the backdated degrees would pose a problem in future, Rahul said, "So long as you do not say anything about it, it will not be a problem for sure. The thing is, even I wasn't aware of how easy getting this degrees would be. Now that I am in contact with certain people, it has become possible."

For an LLB degree, one consultancy told these correspondents that they could get them enrolled in the Chaudhry Charan Singh University, Meerut (Uttar Pradesh). "It is a regular course, but you are not required to attend classes, so you can continue with your job unhindered. It is a three-year course and will cost you Rs 30,000 per year," said Sampat (name changed). Sampat also gave an assurance about the employability on completion of the course. "You can practise as a lawyer in any court across India," he said.

An "education institute" which guarantees a PhD degree in two years, charges Rs 170,000. Ajay (name changed) said, "You will get your PhD from Monad University, Hapur (Uttar Pradesh) within two years and you can go for classes as per your convenience. We will also provide help in your examinations and can get you a readymade thesis if you want."