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Private schools hike fee without asking the government

Private schools have hiked their fees by up to 25 percent starting from the new academic year beginning Tuesday, without fulfilling the criteria of the education by-laws, Kantipur daily reported.

Schools have started taking an increased fee while admitting the students for academic year 2009/2010, as per a circular from their umbrella organisation PABSON.

According to an existing education by-law, private schools can increase fees only after an approval from respective District Education Offices (DEO). Schools should file a proposal of fee hike, two months before the beginning of an academic year. An assembly of parents should pass such proposal, before the school management files the proposal at the DEO.

School owners have said the fee hike is aimed at providing teachers with salary and perks equivalent to the government teachers.

Private and Boarding Schools Organisation, Nepal (PABSON) issued a circular instructing its member schools to increase the fees by up to 25 per cent and use half of it to increase the salary of staff. The other half will be used for the administration and development of the school.

PABSON chairman Bhoj Bahadur Shah told Kantipur, the organisation did not deem necessary to file a proposal at the DEO as the Fee Fixation Committee has not met for years and the school fees have not been revised for a long time.

'There was no way we could increase the salary of the teachers without increasing the fees,' Shah said.

Some 1.5 million students studying in one of the 8000 schools across the country are affected by the fee hike. nepalnews.com Apr 13 09