Granted that anything related to aviation is expensive. But consider this, CASA charges a fee of AUD 110 for issue of licence. Everything is computerised so that if you have any query related to your licence, it can be processed within minutes, not months. Licence replacement/reprint etc take 24 hrs. Most of the work can be done by the applicant by login onto your account with the ARN number.
For Asutralian standards AUD 110 (Rs 5,300)is a nominal fee. With the kind of fast and efficient service we get, it is money well spent. But Rs5000 for an Indian licence, printed on cheap paper that has been recycled 50 times over, and issued after 6 months in the waiting is daylight robbery.