Telangana private school fee hike to be capped at 8% once in two years

The Telangana School Education department proposed any further increase would require approval from State fee regulatory committee. The proposal, expected to be tabled at the next Cabinet meeting, has been rejected by private schools, which demand a 5 % annual hike in line with inflation.

Hyderabad: The School Education department proposed allowing private schools to hike the fee up to eight percent once every two years. Any increase beyond this limit will require approval from the State fee regulatory committee, which will verify necessary documents, including revenue and expenditure, before fixing the fee.

The proposal to regulate exorbitant fee hikes by the private and corporate schools sent to the State government is expected to be tabled for the next State cabinet meeting. However, this proposal did not go down well with the private schools, which outrightly rejected it.

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The budget private schools, which constitute the majority out of 11,000 private and corporate schools in the State, want a five percent annual fee hike in line with the consumer price index.

“An eight per cent fee hike once in two years is against principles of natural justice. The fee hike should be given considering the inflation rate. We opposed the proposal during the last meeting with the School Education department officials,” said Sadula Madhusudhan, president Telangana Recognised Schools’ Management Association.

In its report to the government, the Telangana Education Commission had recommended a 10 to 15 percent fee hike once in three years, on the lines of the Telangana Admission and Fee Regulatory Committee that fixes fees for private professional colleges.

For hiking the fee, the Commission recommended the constitution of Telangana Private Unaided Schools Fee Regulatory Commission headed by a former Supreme Court or High Court judge at the State level. It suggested senior academicians, professors, chartered accountants, and school management as members of the committee.

The Commission also recommended a district-wise fee regulatory committee, which will be headed by the Collector. Apart from proposing fee fixation duly considering the consumer price index, the commission suggested a lock-in period of three years.

It wanted nominal fee fixation considering the school’s building, infrastructure, revenue, expenditure, labs and playgrounds among other amenities. However, the department has made certain changes to the recommendations.