Ludhiana: Students move court as private schools deny transfer letter

Students who migrated from private schools to the govt schools were denied transfer certificate due to non-payment of dues

The local education department is flooded with complaints from students who migrated from private schools to government schools in the district, accusing their former alma mater of withholding their documents including, school transfer certificate (STC), character certificate, and detailed mark sheets.

The local education department is flooded with complaints from students who migrated from private schools to government schools in the district, accusing their former alma mater of withholding their documents. (Representative photo)

Around 184 cases came to the fore wherein students of Classes 8 to 12, who migrated from private schools to the government schools, were denied school transfer documents by their previous schools due to non-payment of the dues.

Many students adopted the legal course and have moved the court. The district education department has made a special committee to deal with such complaints.

The designated team is conducting talks with the concerned private schools and requesting them to release the school leaving certificates. Around 100 complaints have been settled after the intervention of the committee to date.

Other than the 184 cases, 12 complaints have been forwarded to the district education officer by the local deputy commissioner’s office. These include complaints of students who have passed Class 12 but are struggling to get their TC.

In one such case, the father of a student submitted before a local court that his daughter had passed both Classes 10 and 12 from a private school, but the school was not releasing her Class 12 detailed mark sheets and the character certificate. The school, according to the father, is demanding ₹1.50 lakh dues in lieu of the documents.

According to the officials, most of these students got admissions in the government schools after an order released by the former education secretary, schools, dated August 7, 2020, which stated that even in case a private school refuses to issue the STC to a student, heads of the government schools can admit the pupil after doing self-verification.

“Admissions were done adhering to the orders of the secretary. Another order was later released directing the government schools to admit the students after taking all the documents from them including STC”, informed an official.

He added, “When we sought STC from the students who migrated from the private schools, the schools denied issuing the same contending that the students have not cleared their dues. These certificates are even required during job interviews.”

A list of over 150 private schools including MGM Public School, Dugri, BVM School, Sector 32-A, Jamalpur, Venus International Public School, Sai senior secondary Public School, Lucky Model School, Starex Public School, Dashmesh Public Senior Secondary School, Decent Public School, Arya Girls Senior Secondary School, and Orient Convent School, was submitted with the department by the committee.

A few private schools have written to the department expressing displeasure against the admissions given to their students in the government schools without taking TC from them.

A senior officer, on the condition of anonymity, said most of the PSEB affiliated private schools have issued STC to the students after mediation by the committee. Meanwhile, the CBSE schools are still reluctant to release the documents without clearance of dues.

DEO Lakhbir Singh said that the committee formed in this regard is working efficiently, and soon students will get their TC.