NEW DELHI: Amid lockdown blues, parents are allegedly facing harassment by schools in Delhi over fees. While many schools have raised their fees for the new academic session, several of them have allegedly blocked the contact numbers of the parents who have not been able to pay, preventing students from accessing online classes.
According to Delhi Parents Association, about 288 private schools have hiked annual charges, varying from 10 per cent to 80 per cent. These include DPS Mathura Road, GD Goenka International in Dwarka, DAV- Rohini, Hansraj Model School in Punjabi Bagh and St Marks Girls School in Janakpuri.
St. Thomas School in Dwarka has added a new column of ‘Personal Health and Hygiene’ in its fees structure. The parents now have to pay Rs 300 quarterly for personal hygiene and health of their children. “Amid the lockdown, the schools should waive of the fees or at least give us time to pay. I have lost my job and it is very hard to run the family. But the school has taken this an opportunity and is charging for personal hygiene even as the children are not going to school,” said a parent whose child is studying in the school.
When contacted, a member of the school’s management committee, Aman Gautam, said the decision of fee hike was being revisited. “Witnessing the crisis, the school management committee held a meeting and is planning to withdraw the revised fee structure as a relief to the parents. For parents who have already paid, the amount will be adjusted in the next quarter,” said Gautam. “The 2019-20 fee structure will be resumed and once the decision is finalised, parents can pay the fees after 3months or when the lockdown ends.”
In these times of crisis, schools should wave off the fees instead of raising it.Also, the government should issue a list of schools that are permitted to hike fees. Parents are willing to pay tuition fees, but why are they being forced to pay for extra-curricular activities, construction and smart class,” said Aparajita G Gautam, president, DPA.
The parents association of JM International School filed a complaint with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights alleging the school blocked the online classes for the parents who failed to pay the fees.
The DPA claimed it had written a letter to CM Arvind Kejriwal, Education Minister Manish Sisodia and the Directorate of Education regarding the harassment by private schools, but none responded.
Binay Bhushan, Director, DoE, said “offices are closed, so we have not received any complaint”. However, he added, “No school can increase fees without DoE’s permission. If they do, strict action will be taken against them. Parents can send a mail or WhatsApp to me their complaints in detail with evidence and appropriate action will be taken,” he said.
Advocate Ashok Agarwal, who has done a lot of work in the education sector, said, “The private schools have enough money to pay salaries to the teachers. They have reserve funds meant for emergency time. They should waive off three months’ fees of those who are genuinely unable to pay. The Delhi government should take a stand and issue an order or advisory to the schools regarding waive-off and fee hike.”