Bill to regulate school fee will be introduced in the Budget Session

Updated on: Saturday, December 11, 2010

A bill to regulate school fee will be introduced in the budget session of the Assembly, the State Government said. The decision was announced at the ongoing winter session of the Assembly after questions on the subject was raised by 42 MLAs during the question hour, taking up 50 minutes.

Leader of Opposition Eknath Khadse, Shiv Sena leader Subhash Desai and PWP MLA Vivek Patil were among those who raised the issue of unreasonable fee hike by schools in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane. Most MLAs were worried that parents with average incomes would not be able to afford good education for their children, if private schools continued the fee hike.

School Education Minister Rajendra Darda said the government was also ready to issue an ordinance if needed for which it would consult the Law and Judiciary Department so that it would stand scrutiny if challenged in court. A July 15,2010,Government Resolution saying that schools would have to seek state permission before implementing any change in fees was scrapped by the Bombay High Court after it was challenged by schools.

Over the past few years there have been several cases of students suffering as schools hike fee without adequate warning and parents find themselves unable to pay it. On November 26, Khar Education Society's Mumbadevi Vidya Mandir had confined about 40 students in a library for four consecutive days for the non payment of fee.

The students were not provided with food and water and were barred from going to toilet. Parents were agitated and at the end they filled a police complain at Khar Police station. The education inspector P N Pawar also made an inquiry into the matter. The parents and the management had a meeting after the fourth day of confinement and the school reduced the fee by 20 per cent.

Darda said that now, as per the court directive, the State Government has started the process of legislating a new act to regulate school fees.

Bill to regulate school fee will be introduced in the Budget Session

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