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Private schools continue to cheat parents with massive hike in fees

Subodh Bhasin. Dated: 2/8/2018 10:52:11 AM

Lack of Legislature in the state turn schools commercialization

Subodh Bhasin
Jammu, Feb 7
In J&K there are about 5300 private schools with approximate enrolment of 12 lakh students. Inspite of the fact that the concerned authorities receive several complaints from time to time, there is no dearth to end the loot adopted by private schools by hiking the fee and other charges without any norms put into practice by the concerned authorities.
There were several protest held by the distressed parents who felt cheated by these schools after their wards get enrolled. With the burden of increasing fee without prior information parents are left with no option rather to be at the mercy of these schools for giving better education to their wards.
In most of the cases for this unjustified loot, schools continue to expel students for non-payment of fees, sending circulars justifying the hike, and in some cases, even shutting down for a few days without notice.
MLC Mohammad Khursheed while raising the question regarding any comprehensive policy regarding improving education system in the State of Jammu and Kashmir sought the reply from the government. The Minister Incharge admitted the fact about the practice of loot adopted by the private schools and receiving of complaints about the arbitrary enhancement of fee structure by these institutions although Supreme Court has issued direction to regulate the fee structure of the private schools.
For this a committee was constituted in the year 2013 with mandate to regulate the fee structure and profiteering of private schools in Jammu and Kashmir. Even after lapse of three years lack of legislature in the state of Jammu Kashmir gives free hand to these private schools to work as commercializes business. Even a draft Bill on Fixation of Fee Structure of private Educational Institutes in the state is already prepared but it is yet to be brought before the State Legislature in due course of time.
Several distressed parents while sharing their grievances with Young Bites Correspondent said that Schools are increasing fees every year now. We said nothing. This is sheer loot. My salary is not increasing at that rate every year, how do we pay?”
They asked the State government that before the onset of new academic session the government should take effective steps so that we could have some relief from the loot by these schools.