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Pay full school fees: HC
If your child is studying in a private unaided school, pay the full fee amount now. You will get a refund if the fee structure is revised by the state government’s Fee Fixation Committee.
If your child is studying in a private unaided school, pay the full fee amount now. You will get a refund if the fee structure is revised by the state government’s Fee Fixation Committee.
The interim order asking parents to pay the full fee amount was passed by the Bombay High Court on Wednesday. The HC was hearing a petition by an association of 16 international schools.
The association has challenged the government resolutions (GR) of May 8 and June 11 that unaided schools could not hike their fees.
The state has set up two committees under the GRs for devising a formula for fee hike in private unaided schools, as stipulated under the Capitation Fee (Prevention) Act.
The state had also imposed a blanket ban on fee hikes, until reports of these committees were received and a Fee Fixation Committee set up, threatening that it would otherwise withdraw the schools’ affiliation letters.
Government pleader Vinay Masurkar said the government was willing to defer enforcing the GRs’ terms for three months.
Anil Anturkar, counsel for another petitioner organisation challenging the hike in Bal Bharti School, Kharghar, objected to giving any such liberty to private schools. He said the schools could not be allowed to hike fees without being scrutinised by the committee.
“It is very unfortunate that the Capitation Fee Act had come in force in 1988 but the committee has not yet seen the light of the day,” he said.
Senior counsel Iqbaal Chagla, appearing for the association, said schools having affiliation to boards like the International Baccalaureate of Geneva have an altogether different infrastructure and pay scale for staff.
The court has now asked the state to file, within two weeks, a detailed affidavit to the petition by the international school association.
The matter will come up after four weeks for final disposal.
