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  Parents complain of fee exploitation

Parents complain of fee exploitation

AGE CORRESPONDENT
Published : May 1, 2016, 1:40 am IST
Updated : May 1, 2016, 1:40 am IST

Parents of various schools in the city have complained of being exploited by being asked to repay admission fees so that their child is promoted to Class I and V.

A group of parents protest outside St Xavier’s High School in Goregaon (east) on Saturday
 A group of parents protest outside St Xavier’s High School in Goregaon (east) on Saturday

Parents of various schools in the city have complained of being exploited by being asked to repay admission fees so that their child is promoted to Class I and V. Parents say that the schools simply handed them school leaving certificates on result day and said that they should pay admission fees ranging from Rs 2,500 to Rs 20,000 for fresh admissions. The parents also alleged that the schools asked them to seek admission in other schools if they were not willing to repay the admission fees.

Speaking about the problem, Jayant Jain, president of Forum for Fairness in Education (FFE) said that the schools were regularly coming up with new methods to squeeze money out of parents.

“The schools have applied fee hikes in excess of the 15 per cent permitted by the high court without conferring with the Parent Teachers Association. Now they are simply handing over the leaving certificates and asking parents to pay admission fees again,” said Mr Jain.

Elaborating on the repayment of admission fees, Mr Jain said, “Schools charge huge amounts in the form of capitation fees at the time of admitting children in the pre-primary section. Every time the child moves from one section to another (pre-primary to primary and primary to secondary) parents are expected to pay admission fees all over again. This is blatant in violation of the Capitation Fee Act but the education department is doing nothing to curb this exploitation,” said Mr Jain.

On Saturday, the city saw protests by parents outside various schools to condemn the exploitation. Protests took place at areas including Goregaon, Dadar, Dombivali, Chembur and Fort.

Acting deputy director of education, B.B. Chavan said, “Schools are not allowed to charge capitation fees nor increase the fees without the permission of the PTA. The department will take action against schools flouting these norms on receiving complaints from parents or organisations representing them.”