Greater Noida: Team of the NCR Parents Association and parents of Greater Noida West met the District Magistrate of Gautam Buddha Nagar to discuss their concern about the 5 per cent increase in private schools' fees on April 19, 2022. Afterwards, the parents submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh on the same day.
The District Magistrate was apprised of the problems faced by the parents due to the arbitrariness of the schools in increasing the school fee amidst inflation and going against the Fee Regulation Act.
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NEFOWA and members of the NCR Parents Association protested against the alleged arbitrary hike in school fees on Sunday, April 17, 2022. The parents are asking why has the state government allowed private schools to increase the fees when the pandemic is still not over.
Sukhpal Singh Toor, NCR Parents Association President says, “During the Uttar Pradesh assembly election, the government had announced that school fees would not be increased until the pandemic is over. Now, the government has allowed private schools to increase their fees? If Corona is over, why has the government still made masks mandatory? Was the promise of not increasing the school fees a gimmick for the upcoming elections?"
Sagar Gupta, a parent, and member of NCR Parents Association says, “Soon, we will run a Twitter campaign and appeal to the government to roll back the fee hike. The District Magistrate shared that something can be done in this regard from the state level.”
Rahul Garg, a parent says, “Almost all private schools earn in crores by selling private publication stationery and uniforms on their respective premises. Schools have already hiked school bus fees by citing the increase in CNG prices. Then there is news of children getting infected from various schools. In such a situation, arrangements should be made for studies in hybrid mode and the fees should be brought down."
Another parent, Manish Kumar says, “Private schools seem only to be worried about their fees and not the safety of students. Vaccination of children below the age of 12 years has not even started. Sending children below the age of 12 years to school is like inviting Corona. The rules of social distancing are not being followed in school buses and even in school classrooms. Now, if children get infected, would they share the responsibility?"
