AMRITSAR SAHIB, Punjab—The Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar has excoriated the steep hikes in fees by private schools in Punjab for the coming academic year of 2017-18. The extortionate inclination in fees has worries many parents.
Speaking to Sikh24, SADA leaders S. Amrik Singh Ballowal, S. Navdeep Singh Amritsar and S. Gursharan Singh Sohal said that the parents of children in every district of Punjab were suffering vagarious hikes but the former and current Punjab governments have failed in providing relief.
S. Navdeep Singh said that the private schools have always made fun of court rulings by finding new loopholes to counter them each time. He said that the Right to Education Act (RTE) had made it mandatory for every private school to provide a free education to a minimum of 25% for poor students, from their total intake but the schools have been accused of sending in bogus entries of students for fill this quota.
S. Navdeep Singh further said that on being barred from charging re-admission charges, the private schools have now started charging money from parents under the title of ‘annual charges’.
S. Gursharan Singh Sohal said that the private schools were also side-stepping the Supreme Court’s ruling of not hiking fees by more than 10%. He claimed that he can present a list of schools where the fee has been hiked by more than 20%.
He maintained that the Punjab government was helping private schools by not equipping government schools with proper funds and adequate technology.
The trio said that the poor parents in Punjab were forced to have their kids admitted to private schools due to poor quality of education being provided in government schools. “It is the responsibility of the Punjab government to ensure quality education to children at affordable rates”, they added.
All pvt school must enrol by Law to at least 10 % of School children from economically weaker sections of society.
All Teachers must give 10% of time to teach the economically backward children’s.
SGPC and Punjab Govt needs to open up more modern schools and colleges to fulfill the needs of society.
Govt school need to be upgraded and teachers salaries ,status and respect need to be enhanced. In society.
All school children who succeed in life need to come back and help there school to upgrade themselves.