CHENNAI: After Bala Vidya Mandir and Asan Memorial, one more private school has come under the scanner of Justice Singaravelu Fee determination committee after parents complained that St John’s Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Villivakkam has asked them to pay `500 every month since the start of the academic year.
Termed as monthly fee, parents were informed about it through a message on the school’s notice board in the first week of July.
Receipts in possession of Express show that the school has billed the `500 as charges for providing ‘Smart Class’ facility.
“We are already paying a yearly fee of `18,000 and this smart class fee would add `6,000 per year. When we approached the school authorities, they asked us to quietly pay it,” said the parent of a Class 1 student.
A government source said the committee had set the upper limit of fees after duly considering the ‘Smart Class’ facility offered by the school and contended that the additional charges were in contravention of the committee’s order.
Upset and angered by the demand, nearly 150 parents submitted a petition to the fee determination committee three weeks ago.
On Tuesday, in the presence of parents and a representative from the school, Justice Singaravelu issued an oral order directing the school to immediately stop over-charging and refund the extra fee. The committee will conduct its next hearing on August 5, parents said.
Officials refused to comment when Express contacted the school management on the number mentioned in its website.