KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Thursday directed the Central and state governments to inform the court as to whether there are any guidelines issued for effective monitoring of the statutory provisions of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act. The court also asked whether any guidelines have been issued to identify children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups.
The court issued the order on a petition filed by K P Albert, of Vennala, Ernakulam, seeking to stay the collection of fees by schools affiliated to CBSE and Indian School Certificate Examinations. A P Samal Kumar, counsel for the petitioner, submitted that due to ongoing lockdown and economic slowdown, most of the parents were in dire straits. Therefore, they are finding it difficult to pay the full fees. The petitioner also sought to take appropriate steps to appoint officers to assess the actual tuition fees for conducting online class.