Page 20 - EW May 2025

Education News

tion (according to a Union education Private schools’ associa-
ministry release dated January 7) — is tions cite rising operational
confronted with a snowballing youth costs to provide quality
unemployment crisis as 7-8 million education, including lat-
dropouts and school-leavers enter est academic/sports/IT
the jobs market annually. A signifi- infrastructure and facili-
cant decline in the number of students ties, higher teacher salaries,
writing higher secondary exams — 2.8 training, etc.
lakh fewer this year — is a pointer to D. Shashikumar, gen-
youth disengagement and loss of trust eral secretary, Associated
in the education system. Managements of Private
Comments Swapan Mandal, Schools in Karnataka, says
General Secretary of the Bengal education ministry rules
Teachers and Employees Association permit private unaided
(BTEA): “The disqualification of so Fee hike protestors in Bengaluru schools to raise fees by 10-12
many teachers by the Supreme Court percent annually. “There are
will severely damage the foundation of policy solutions, the Karnataka 48 components that contribute to
the academic system and lead to fur- State Commission for Protection determining fee increases, including
ther erosion of educational standards of Child Rights served notices to rising costs of electricity, fuel, gar-
in the state.” three CBSE-affiliated independent bage collection, etc. Unaided private
As people at the bottom of West schools in Bengaluru for “unscien- schools raising fees annually in the
Bengal’s iniquitous socio-economic tifically charging exorbitant fees”. 8-15 percent bracket is necessary to
pyramid who send their children to The commission also wrote to the provide quality schooling. However,
government schools grapple with state’s department of school educa- I agree that 20-30 percent annual
the consequences of continuous cor- tion recommending action against hikes decreed by some schools are
ruption within the public education these schools if they failed to provide unreasonable,” says Kumar.
system, Chief Minister Banerjee’s “reasonable explanation”. he issue of government regula-
promise of poribartan made in 2011 Several parents’ associations in Ttion of private school fees has
is evoking bitter reaction. With the the state have protested that this been heavily litigated over the past
weight of judicial verdicts bearing year’s tuition fee hikes of 15-30 half century with several high and
down on her administration, next percent are “unreasonable” and way Supreme Court pronouncements on
year’s assembly elections are likely to beyond the rate of inflation. “Why the subject. In the landmark TMA
prove the Waterloo of Bannerjee and should schools increase fees every Pai Case (2002), an 11-judge bench
the TMC for conspicuous failure to year by 10-30 percent when infla- of the apex court held that unaided
deliver on the very reforms that pro- tion itself is not even 10 percent? private education institutions have
pelled them to power over a decade The increase of tuition fees should be the right to administer themselves
ago. pegged to inflation,” says Moham- including determine their admission
Baishali Mukherjee (Kolkata) med Shakeel, president, Voice of processes and prescribe ‘reason-
Parents, a Bengaluru-based parents’ able’ tuition fees. Most recently in
KARNATAKA association. 2021, in Society for Unaided Private
Moreover, in a statement on social
Annual protests ritual media platform X, Voice of Parents Schools of Rajasthan vs. Union of
India & Ors, the apex court ruled
accused private schools of “commer- that the right to determine tuition
very april, it has become an cialization and profiteering”: “Sure, fees payable by students is vested in
annual ritual for parents and private schools have the right to every school’s “management alone”
Echild rights organisations to establish and manage schools... They (in its interpretation of the Supreme
protest tuition fee hikes of inde- also have a right to fix their own fee Court’s judgement in the T.M.A. Pai
pendent (‘unaided’) private schools but, as per numerous orders of the Case), and that the government can-
for the academic year beginning Supreme Court… they cannot profi- not interfere with this right even dur-
June. On April 18, responding to a teer or commercialise education. ing emergencies such as the Covid
complaint of the Samruddha Bharat While schools are fixing their own pandemic.
Foundation (SBF), a Bengaluru- fees, government has to determine if Refreshingly, Karnataka educa-
based sociopolitical organisation schools are commercialising educa- tion minister Madhu Bangarappa
that engages with academics, activ- tion and profiteering, by appointing offered parents protesting tuition
ists and policymakers to develop a fees determination committee.” fee increases straightforward advice:

20 EDUCATIONWORLD MAY 2025