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| Education suffers at hands of costly Pvt schools | | Finally education authorities awake from deep slumber | | Munish Gupta
Jammu, April 20:The recent hike in the monthly fees of the students by some private schools in the city has drawn flak from the parents. The sudden increase in the fees structure has not only made the school education expensive but dwindled the monthly budget of common man as well.
A random survey of these schools by Early Times revealed that there is a significant increase in the fees structure of these schools.
Parents maintained that in these conditions they are left with no option but to change the school of their child as the expenses have increased beyond their limit.
Working as autonomous bodies, some reputed private schools have once again left the parents of their students in lurch with sudden raise in their fee structures in the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir, causing great financial crises to the parents whose children are pursuing studies in such schools.
The parents in such reputed schools have admitted their children so that they may grow as respectable citizen of the society but now it has almost become impossible for many to continue their wards in such schools due to the sky rocketing increase in the fee structure.
Ashwani Sharma, one of the aggrieved parents, says that he admitted his son and a daughter at Nagbani School with the hope that by receiving standard education from Nagbani School, future of his wards would be bright. “However, today I feel helpless as I cannot afford fee”, Farooq, who is a constable in Jammu and Kashmir Police and gets salary of Rs 8,500 per month, told our correspondent.
Another parent Suresh Sharma had the same feelings. He said that sudden hike in fee structure have made him to think to admit his child in a government school since, “I cannot bear the more financial burden”.
“Parents have been blackmailed on the name of their children by the school authorities” Santosh Kumari mother of a student said.
More over while talking to our correspondent , Director school Education Zahida Khan said that a notice have been issued by the department and any institution not adhering to the Government instructions and violating the same shall invite consequences which may include cancellation of their recognition/ permission thereof. She also stated that there since there is not any strict rule to this problem but the government and our department is very serious in this issue and hoped that some serious steps will be taken out .
The department has also advised parents to get their children admitted in school duly recognized by the Government and exorbitant fees charged if any, other than the notified one as shown to the parents at the time of seeking admission/ admitting their wards in the said institution, may be brought to the notice of this Directorate in writing for further appropriate action against the erring institution.
Addressing media men here today MHAC Nagbani School Parents Association, Jammu alleged that the management has increased the fee structure by over 90 per cent on the plea that salary of staff is to be raised according to 6th Pay Commission. The massive hike in tuition fee is unjustifiable as most of the parents of students are small scale businessmen, private employees or Group-D or C Government Employees, Kashmiri migrants and poor villagers who are not in a position to bear this abnormal hike, the Association said.
The Association also took strong notice of the over crowding in class rooms and pointed out that in most of the cases more than 60 students are in one class room. The concerned teachers are unable to teach the class properly due to overcrowded students. This results into deterioration of education standard as proper attention is not being paid to individual student. Strength of a section should not be more than 30 students as per C.B.S.E. guidelines, the Association pointed out.
It also demanded that the mode of payment of tuition fee should be quarterly instead of six monthly at present and more so the children should be imparted best and quality education and they shall grow as respectable citizens of the society and serve our State/Country to the best and entire satisfaction of parents / elders. The Association also demanded that the annual charges should not be increased every year in respect of already admitted (old) students. It also demanded closing down the canteen within the school premises as availability of substandard junk food was spoiling the health as well as general habits of the students.
They again alleged that most of the schools in Jammu have been offering 25 percent of rebate in tuition fee for real brother/sister studying in the same school instead at Nagbani, they said adding, offering only ten percent rebate for the same.
The parents urged the administration that they should give them 25 percent rebate in tuition fee for real brother/sister studying in the said school.
In this connection, Shiv Sena Hindustan staged a protest in front of Press Club of Jammu against the CBSE schools and urged the state government Director School Education to maintain proper check on the recent fee hike, annual charges, besides other things which are being done by the said schools on their own.
However, the parents from the elite section of the society were seemingly not much affected. One of the parents who recently got his child admitted in LKG gave an exorbitant amount of Rs 32,000 and said, “No doubt the fees is quite high as compared to many others schools in the city but the facilities being provided by them are at par with any other best school in the country,” he added.
In Box
1. Every Private Institution (affiliated/ permitted by State Govt/Board/CBSE) shall notify the details of fee structure chargeable from the students at the time of admission or entering in new class at prominent places of the school and necessary publication as well through public notice in the newspaper.
2. No Mid Session enhancement of fee shall be allowed.
3. No extra fees to be charged other than the notified one.
4. No sale of books/uniforms shall be allowed in any circumstances in the school premises.
5. Transport charges to be realized as per the rates fixed by the RTO/ Transport Commissioner J&K Govt. Jammu.
6. No Transport charges shall be realized for the vocation period.
7. No institution shall be allowed to commercialization of Education at any cost.
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