Will derecognise schools demanding next year’s fees: Karnataka minister S Suresh Kumar

BENGALURU: Primary and secondary education minister S Suresh Kumar pulled up schools for issuing circulars to parents asking them to pay fees for the next academic year and warned the managements of stringent action.
“The school management will be held accountable under the Education Act and actions will include cancellation of recognition of the school and a criminal case under section 3 of Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 and also CrPC … Schools that have issued circulars to parents are requested to suspend them until further orders,” he said.
The department of public instruction had issued a circular earlier asking schools to postpone the admission process and fee collection for 2020-2021, including for students continuing in the same institition. The department had acted following parents’ complaints against schools asking them to cough up fees, which they pointed out was not only against the lockdown order but also insensitive.
Meanwhile, the department extended work from home facility for primary and high school teachers till April 11 in view of the lockdown. Summer holidays for schools start on April 11.
Schools say they are in distress
School managements claimed they are facing a crisis with the monthly fee collection having been stopped.
The Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka, which has several budget private schools under its umbrella, requested the government to release the pending RTE reimbursement fees to help them.
General secretary D Sashi Kumar said, “Only Rs 550 crore has been released by the state so far and another Rs 1,300 crore is pending. We request the government to release at least Rs 1,000 crore.”