E-Paper
Uttar Pradesh government allows private schools to hike fees
The Uttar Pradesh government eased the restrictions it had earlier imposed on schools to prevent an increase in fees for the third successive year on January 7
Private schools across Uttar Pradesh will now be able to increase the fees for the new academic session 2022-23.
In an order issued here, the state government eased the restrictions it had earlier imposed on schools to prevent an increase in fees for the third successive year on January 7.
The order issued by additional chief secretary (secondary education) Aradhna Shukla said private schools can increase their fees from the academic session 2022-23. It reads that the schools can only increase the fees by 5 per cent. The fee structure of the academic session 2019-20 will be kept as the base, it adds.
“Private schools can increase the fees for the academic session 2022-23 as per norms,” reads the letter signed by Shukla on April 8.
The letter has been sent to the district inspectors of schools (DIoSes) along with other secondary education department officials for implementation.
The letter came after the Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court on March 15 asked the state government to file its reply on a petition challenging the government order (GO) prohibiting fee hike in private schools. The court took a serious note of the government’s failure to respond to its earlier order on the issue.
The court had on February 16, 2022 asked the government to file its reply on the issue, which the government failed to do.
The Association of Private Schools of UP had filed a petition in the high court challenging the state government’s January 7, 2022 order, prohibiting fee hike in private schools due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Private schools were also stopped from increasing fees for the sessions 2020-21 and 2021-22 for the same reason. In the last two years, the schools were asked to continue to take fee as per the fee structure of 2019-20.
The education department has further warned to keep the fee hike in check so that it does not exceed it by 5% as per norms.
“If any student, or guardian or parent-teacher association is aggrieved with respect to the fees charged by the schools for the academic session 2022-23, then they can submit a complaint to the District Fee Regulatory Committee under section 8 of the Act 2018,” reads the letter.
Anil Agarwal, president of Unaided Private School Association, UP, said, “All private schools in Uttar Pradesh will increase their class-wise monthly composite fee by up to 10% maximum in the current session 2022-23. This increase will be based on the fee being charged in the session 2020.”
“For example, if the fee for class I in a school was ₹1000 in the session 2020, then it will increase to a maximum of ₹ 1100. If a private school wants, it can increase less than this, but the maximum increase will not be more than 10%. This decision has been taken by all the private schools by consensus and includes the consent of all the associations,” Agarwal said.
He thanked UP government and chief minister Yogi Adityanath on behalf of all the private schools for withdrawing the government order issued on January 7, 2022.
