Parents said Paramount International School in Sector 23, Dwarka, introduced the steep hikes without any prior notice to them.
Several parents of children studying in Paramount International School in Sector 23, Dwarka, today protested against the school management for suddenly hiking the price of books and uniforms without any prior notice.
They said there had been a 100 to a 200 per cent increase in the price of books, stationery and uniforms.
Monika Miglani, a protesting parent, said, “We are having to pay almost Rs 9,000 for books for Class VI upwards, excluding the NCERT ones. The diary that cost Rs 100 last year is now Rs 250; a notebook that cost Rs 30 is now Rs 85; a belt that came for Rs 50 is now Rs 250; and a shirt that cost Rs 300 is now Rs 600. It is a hitherto uncalled-for price hike that we had no idea about. And overall it is a huge financial strain on us. We parents have go together to together protest this move by the school management.”
After the protest, parents said that the school conceded on some points of protest, whereas a few others were still to be discussed and decided upon.
Namrata Upadhyay, another parent said, “We can't pay a sudden steep hike such as this one. We wanted the school management to consider our points and give us some relief in the price of books and uniforms. Thankfully they have agreed to some changes. They have made some purchases optional and brought down the price of books to about Rs 4,100. A discount of 5 per cent has also been applied on other books.”
When asked about why they didn't buy the books and uniforms from outside, Miglani said that so far, though there was no formal notice from the school, it was expected of parents that they buy the necessary items from the school itself. However, after today's protest, the school management has said they can buy the items from outside as well.
Parents said that this time around as well, the school had not given them anything in writing. “There has been only verbal communication from the school about the discounts and the price drops. We are waiting for some sort of written response to our protest," Miglani said.
"We are also waiting for the school to arrive at a decision on the price of the school uniforms," she added.
