Over 60 percent of parents with their children in budget schools have not paid fees, said Shashi Kumar, President Pvt Schools Association. NEW DELHI: To pay or not to pay, waiver or moratorium--parents of school children are confused with announcements of several state governments offering relaxations for school fees during the coronavirus lockdown period in the country. D Shashikumar, Principal and General Secretary, KAMS, said, "We need to pay salaries to our staff members and it becomes extremely difficult to manage. Aside from this, the KAMS has asked the government to clear their RTE dues which amounts to Rs 1,200 crore. Parents from different States moves SC seeking moratorium on school fees for lockdown period ... or deferment of payment of school fees during the COVID-19 induced lockdown. “Even in an independent school, there is a provision that says the best interest of the child must be looked after.” - Coronavirus Hotline Number: 0800 029 999 from 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday The court had been approached by two students seeking a direction to the government to bar schools from collecting fees during the lockdown period. I paid the March fees on Feb 26 and now I am expected to pay April 2020 fees, however my daughter has not attended the school since March 17 and will not attend until lockdown is concluded. The lockdown has posed inordinate challenges for education – with schools and universities adjusting to remote learning on extremely short notice. Covid-19 deaths in SA mount to 37,000. The department is all set to issue another circular allowing schools to collect the fee from the parents. Written By. "We have got several complaints about schools hiking fees and also levying charges like transport fee, which is not even being utilised during the lockdown. The note issued by the minister to DPI commissioner reads, “Schools can collect the fee only from parents who are financially stable and willing to pay during the lockdown period and not to pressure those who are unable to pay the fees.”. Rejecting the petition, the court took note of the fact that monthly salaries to the teaching and non-teaching staff were still being … The state government has allowed the private schools to collect fees, from the ‘financially stable’ parents, for the next academic year. Read more about Parents move SC seeking moratorium on school fees for lockdown period on Business Standard. That's why we decided to approach the government and get permission to collect fee." It added that many schools hiked their fees and/or started harassing the parents to pay the entire quarterly fees in advance despite schools being shut and non-operational and the students not availing any of their services. The decision had come after various organisatons filed petitions asking the government to revoke its previous order. Schools in the country have been shut much before the national lockdown of 24, March and are likely to be closed at least till 3, May. NEW DELHI: To pay or not to pay, waiver or moratorium--parents of school children are confused with announcements of several state governments offering relaxations for school fees during the coronavirus lockdown period in the country. "Parents who are economically sound and able to pay the fees due (old balance) and parents who plan to retain their children and continue in the same school, such parents who come forward to remit the fees in installments according to their ability," reads the order by Suresh Kumar S, Primary and Secondary Education Minister. The Karnataka Education department has issued show-cause notices to as many as 164 schools in Bengaluru for violating government orders by increasing fees for the upcoming academic year. […] A letter by the private school managements have been submitted to the Chief Secretary of Karnataka TM Vijay Bhaskar stating that the circular needs to be changed. “They can apply for partial exemption if the fees represent between 2% and 10% of their annual salary depending on the number of children they have at a fee-paying, public school.” Parents commenting on the Daily Voice Facebook page were not happy with the WCED’s instruction that they continue to pay school fees during the lockdown. In the wake of increasing complaints against several private schools violating education department guidelines on school fees, the state government on ... staff during Covid-19 lockdown… Karnataka Government permits private schools to collect fees from some parents during lockdown. Follow latest updates on the COVID-19 pandemic here. Haryana directed private schools to not pressurize parents for fees, reported ANI on April 4. Also Read: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases, deaths. SC refuses plea on deferment of school fees during lockdown; SC refuses plea on deferment of school fees during lockdown “This should have been raised before the state High Courts. If the fees are not collected, teachers will be forced to take pay cuts or work without pay for a long time," says a member of Teachers Unite. Noida DM has asked schools, institutions not to compel for student fees during the lockdown period. After the Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka (KAMS) and a collective called Teachers Unite filed two separate petitions seeking the withdrawal of the government order on March 30, which banned schools from collecting fees. Shashikumar said, "If the government pays the RTE dues, then half of the problem of private schools and institutions run by minority organisations will be solved. The DPI had cited the … This year, it has however been increased to Rs 43,800 admission fee and Rs 1,18,000 as additional fee. The Karnataka High Court on Thursday has issued notice in a petition seeking a direction to the state government to allow collection of 50% of school fees for the academic year 2020-21 and to demand payment of pending fees of the previous academic years [Karnataka Private Schools Committee v.State of Karnataka and ors]. Shashikumar and his team have instructed all the private schools about this, "We have told them not to harass or force daily wagers or parents who earn low income to pay fee. “Despite the government order asking the schools not to collect fee during lockdown, several schools were demanding for payment of fees. Contributing to the world’s collective fight against notorious coronavirus, Amazon has waived the subscription fee … "It has been brought to my notice by many parents from all across the country that even in this time of crisis many schools are increasing their annual fee. Share this article: Share Tweet Share Share Share Email Share. If any schools found to be harassing parents, then we will recommend strict action against the management of such schools.”. A 49-year-old father of two children who attend schools in Laudium, Pretoria, said parents shouldn’t be expected to pay for school fees since their children are also on lockdown. It is also important to note that schools can take legal action against the parents who owe school fees and who do not qualify for an exemption. 19 May 2020 By Anneli Howard. Share Via Email. The principal of Pushpa City Pride School in Varanasi, Vachaspati Srivastava has waived the school fees of all his school students for the months of April, May and June as a goodwill gesture during the lockdown period on the advice of his mother. Notice to 16 pvt schools in Punjab for demanding fee during lockdown The school authorities have been asked to give a written reply within seven days chandigarh Updated: Apr 07, 2020, 22:54 IST Last month, I was able to give a full salary to my school teaching and non-teaching staff. Edex Live. Deccan Herald News now on Telegram - Click here to subscribe. It’s a fact intensive situation,” Chief Justice of India S A Bobde, heading a three-judge bench, observed. A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court by the parents of children from different States seeking declaration of moratorium or deferment of payment of school fees during the COVID-19 induced lockdown.. Considering the request, Primary and Secondary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar has directed the Commissioner for Public Instruction to issue a circular allowing schools to collect the fee. BySunitha Rao R / Updated: Oct 2, 2020, 22:06 IST. Uttarakhand Education Secretary R Meenakshi Sundaram on Wednesday directed all government and private schools in the … "The fees remitted by the parents is to be utilised on a priority basis to disburse the salaries of staff working in the school," it reads. While teachers employed by the Department of Education are being paid in full during lockdown, your school fees are used to pay School Governing Body (SGB) teachers and support personnel. But the parents are worried that the schools equipped the government order will harass them for fee. When we downgraded to alert level 4, they announced that schools would reopen gradually over the course of a few months starting on May 1 with higher grades, and slowly moving down the list until grade 1 and 2 returned to school in July. The Karnataka Education department has issued show-cause notices to as many as 164 schools in Bengaluru for violating government orders by increasing fees for the upcoming academic year. This is a school fees letter sent to the school from a parent seeking to waive the payment of school tuition fees during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.. Due to the shut down of schools across the country as a result of the coronavirus, most lessons were conducted online. We know how badly the country has been faring economically in the last few months. Why has it come to Supreme Court? Haryana directed private schools to not pressurize parents for fees, reported ANI on April 4. “Despite the government order asking the schools not to collect fee during lockdown, several schools were demanding for payment of fees. Schools in Punjab taking online classes can charge only tuition fee from students for the lockdown period, the state government said on Thursday. Now, with government allowing them to collect fee, the schools will harass the parents,” says a parent. Schools in Karnataka are allowed to hike fees … School fees during the lockdown. New Delhi: No private school will be allowed to increase fees during the coronavirus lockdown and only the tuition fee can be charged till the time schools reopen, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia announced on Friday. Karnataka, had announced summer vacation in March itself when schools had to be closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. 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