CBSE tells schools to follow fee rules

Naina Mishra
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 19

Now, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has made it mandatory for schools to follow rules and regulations pertaining to regulation of fee formed by the state/UT government, defiance of which will lead to disaffiliation.

On Thursday, the board, in the revised affiliation bylaws, made it compulsory that the fees will be charged under the heads prescribed by the Department of Education of state/UTs. The board also made it mandatory for the schools to adhere to the laws, regulation, and directions of the government for the revision of fee. The fee will not be revised without the process prescribed by the government under any circumstances.

It further directed that the Acts and regulations of the Central and state/UT government enacted or framed in connection with the regulation of fee in respect to various categories of school will be applicable to the CBSE schools of that region as well.

With intent to curb profiteering motive of schools, the board said the schools shall charge fee to the extent of expenses being met by it.

The UT Education Department had recently constituted a seven-member fee regulation committee chaired by Education Secretary BL Sharma under the Chandigarh Administration’s Fee Regulation Act, modeled on the lines of the Punjab Regulation of Fee of Unaided Educational Institution Act-2016. Baffled at the Fee Regulation Act, both the parents association and private schools’ association are mulling to challenge the fee regulation committee in the court for their own reasons.

Govt can’t issue diktat to us: Private schools

HS Mamik, president of the Independent Schools’ Association, said: “The Punjab fee Act has already been challenged before the High Court. We will now challenge the Chandigarh Fee Act by attaching it to our former case. Legally, the government cannot issue a diktat to private schools for revising fee.”

‘Act fails to check existing exorbitant fee structure’

Nitin Goyal, president of the Chandigarh Parents’ Association, said: “The Act does not question the existing fee structure of the schools, even though it directs that the school cannot increase the fee more than 8 per cent. There are many schools that are charging a hefty amount, but not being questioned for the same. Ever since the inception of the Punjab Fee Regulation Act, the schools in the city have been hiking fee by even 20 per cent so that they can heave profit till the time the UT act upon the regulation by forming a committee.”

Committee will stick to law: Education Secy

Education Secretary BL Sharma said: “A committee was formed two months ago and it will take into considerations the cases henceforth. If any school is devising fee structure beyond the prescribed limit, parents can file a complaint against the school through a proper procedure. Now, we cannot dig into the past and see what happened 10 years ago, the committee will oversee issues from the date of its coming into force. We will conform to the law and cannot question the existing fee structure.”