Ghaziabad parents protest fee hike by Amity International School

The protest by parents comes in the wake of a series of protests and demonstrations by parents’ groups against various private schools across Delhi-NCR over increase in fee.

Dozens of parents protested against the alleged fee hike by Amity International School in Sector 1 Vasundhara on Friday morning.

The parents who took part in the protest on Friday alleged that the fee has been hiked by 170% in the past eight years. (HT Photo)

The protest by parents comes in the wake of a series of protests and demonstrations by parents’ groups against various private schools across Delhi-NCR over increase in fee.

Parents whose children study at Amity International School alleged that the fee has been hiked by 170% in the past eight years.

“When I enrolled my daughter in 2009, the school fee was Rs 24,000. Now, this has been increased to Rs 61,000 , which works out to a 170% hike. Compared to last year, the hike is 25%. It is not possible for parents to cope with the unfair hike every year,” said Hridesh, a parent.

Parents also alleged that the school management hiked the bus fare after installing air-conditioners in them.

“The ACs have been installed without our permission and the school now charges Rs 7,000 for three months as bus fare. Similarly, they charge Rs 20,600 as annual charge which was Rs 13,000 in 2009. This hike is unjustified,” said Neeraj, another parent.

“When a child is admitted, they charge a heavy amount in the name of admission fee and building fee. Then what is the point of an annual charge apart from the school fee? They also charge Rs 16,400 as activity fee,” said Hridesh.

Amity International School principal Mrs Balachandran was unavailable for comment.

“We have received a representation from the parents and have taken cognizance of the matter,” said Savita Mehta, spokesperson, Amity group of institutions.

Parents have demanded the setting up of a state regulatory body to control the fee hike in private schools. In the wake of continued protests by parents, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath held a meeting with representatives of the state education department in order to find a solution to the crisis.