E-Paper
Parents protest against Pune schools overcharging fees
Many parents are facing salary cuts and layoffs. In the middle of the pandemic, how can these schools expect us to pay huge amounts of fees when most of the facilities are not even availed by students, says president of India Wide Parents’ Association
The parents’ association in Pune organised a protest in the front of the central building on Thursday against overcharging of fees by private schools.
Talking about their demands, advocate Anubha Sahai, president, India Wide Parents’ Association, said that the schools have violated the norms of Right to Education (RTE) and the issues faced by parents should be addressed by the education department.
“We want solutions to our problems. Many parents are facing salary cuts and layoffs. In the middle of the pandemic, how can these schools expect us to pay huge amounts of fees when most of the facilities are not even availed by students because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Only the tuition fees should be charged from students,” said Sahai.
Kalidas Jadhav from the Parents’ Association, Pune, said that the authorities have not responded to the problems faced by parents.
“Schools are forcing parents to issue post-dated cheques to pay the fee for the whole year. The student should pay for services what they are using, which is just the tuition fee. We are also demanding that this year should be declared a zero year, so that no student loses on the academic curriculum,” said Jadhav.
Laxmi Sapkal, a parent, said that if the government schools were better, there would be no need to admit our children to private schools. “We are willing to give government schools the fees required, provided they improve the quality of education and provide sports facilities to the children, so that the holistic development of the child happens,” said Sapkal.
Speaking during the protest, a parent on the condition of anonymity shared that many schools are not providing login details if the yearly fees is not paid. “Most of the parents have at least two children. The school is charging fees for libraries and sports as well. Financial condition of parents has deteriorated during the pandemic. Moreover, we are forced to pay the fee for the entire year otherwise our children are harassed during online classes,” said the parent.
Dinkar Temkar, joint director of primary education, said that the parents were assured that relevant actions will be taken soon.
“Schools which have stopped online education of selective students, who have not paid full fees, should start the online classes. Also, students who have been removed from private schools during the pandemic should be readmitted to schools immediately. We will be giving normal notices regarding the same very soon,” said Temkar.
