Schools against PTA role in fee hike decisions

Unhappy that the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) will have a role in determining the fee structure if the proposed fee regulation bill is passed in the next assembly session, school managements have instead suggested a state-level fee monitoring committee.

Unhappy that the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) will have a role in determining the fee structure if the proposed fee regulation bill is passed in the next assembly session, school managements have instead suggested a state-level fee monitoring committee.

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The bill states that private schools will have to get any proposed fee hike approved by their respective PTAs ten months ahead of implementing it. The PTA and the management will then have to inform a divisional fee regulatory committee of the consensus on the fee structure.“Why should a PTA’s approval be taken?” said one management representative who attended the meeting. “The PTA should be concerned about the syllabus and planning activities, not with the fee structure. Every PTA has 40 or 50 members. Will there be uniformity on anything?” he added.

Instead, the managements suggested a state-level fee monitoring committee for the entire state to which parents can complain if they feel schools are profiteering.

They expressed reservations against various clauses in the proposed Maharashtra Educational Institutions (Regulation of Collection of Fee) Act at a meeting with government officials on Wednesday.

It was the second day that education minister Rajendra Darda and education department officials held a meeting to take suggestions before finalising the proposed act. Managements are also unhappy about the clause in the proposed act that says school officials will be liable to pay a Rs5-lakh fine and face up to three years of imprisonment if they collect excess fees.