Maharashtra govt likely to ask schools not to collect fees till lockdown ends

With the nationwide lockdown and suspension of classes across the country, Gaikwad said that schools must not force parents to pay fees.

Emulating the Haryana government’s directive to all schools asking them not to take fees till classes resume, Maharashtra education minister Varsha Gaikwad has said that the state will also issue a similar directive.

Maharashtra education minister Varsha Gaikwad has said that schools must not force parents to pay fees. (Bachchan Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

With the nationwide lockdown and suspension of classes across the country, Gaikwad said that schools must not force parents to pay fees. “We might issue a directive in the coming week which will apply to all boards. At a time when people across classes are facing difficulties, schools must not collect fees, at least till the lockdown ends,” Gaikwad said.

On Saturday, the Haryana government directed all private schools affiliated with the Haryana School Board, ICSE, CBSE or any other board not to take school fees till normal classes were resumed. The step was taken after reports emerged of some schools forcing parents to pay fees.

With a nationwide lockdown imposed owing to the coronavirus pandemic, schools and colleges across the state of Maharashtra have also been shut.