HYDERABAD: Several private schools in the city are operating sans proper affiliation from Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). Though all schools are required to get No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Commissioner and Director of School Education Department to function, proper measures are not taken by the department against management of schools that falsely claim to have CBSE affiliation. As a result, parents often fall prey to such schools.
The CBSE grants recognition to schools only from Classes 8 to 12. However, the schools are required to get NOC from the Board to hold junior level classes, but the city schools, conveniently give this a miss.
District eduction officer, Hyderabad, Venkata Narsamma, said: “As and when we get complaints we enquire and take action against erring schools.” Another senior official of the department said that schools with just NOC have to function under the state board and follow the state syllabus.
“If they have provisional affiliation, then they can teach CBSE syllabus. There are many complaints against schools across the State violating these affiliation norms,” the official said.N Narayan, a city-based educationist, said unsuspecting parents take the affiliation claims of schools on face value.
“Only when accidents occur we come to know that a particular school fooled parents and did not have CBSE affiliation. There is no way for them to verify the claims too. If the education department publicises and releases the list of CBSE and SSC schools parents can crosscheck it,” he said.Parents also allege that several schools claim that they have both CBSE and SSC affiliation and demand books of both curriculum to be bought.
Vijay Gopal, an RTI activist and founder of Forum Against Corruption, said: “Management of several schools have been looting thousands of parents across the State by claiming that they come under CBSE so they can sell additional books and mint money.”
Though the department uploads the list of CBSE and SSC affiliated schools on the UDISE website, there is no awareness regarding it. S Srinivas Reddy, state president, Telangana Recognised Schools Management Association (TRSMA), said that the department “overlooks” the issue.
The New Century School, Kukatpally, where a shed-like structure collapsed killing two class 4 students and injuring few others, falsely claimed that it was affiliated to CBSE. In a RTI report, CBSE revealed that SR Digi School at Tarnaka and Secunderabad are not affiliated to the Board.