While the Telangana government has earlier announced guidelines for online classes to begin from September 1, there is a dilemma among parents and students whether this rule is applicable to the schools registered in Telangana which are under other central boards.
Members from Hyderabad School Parents Association (HSPA) have given a representation to the Special Chief Secretary, Chitra Ramachandran, IAS from the Education Department seeking clarification in this regard to know if the same clause is applicable for the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) boards. Some of these schools have already begun classes and are collecting fees, since the start of the lockdown, allege parents.
It was only on August 24 that the school education department of the state announced that the online classes for students affiliated to the state government syllabus and the classes began for them from September 1.
However, when contacted, education department officials said that the central government has already given permission to conduct online classes. "The schools affiliated to central boards can go ahead with the central government guidelines. We need not give a separate order for those central schools," said Hyderabad District Education Officer, B Venkata Narasamma.
In the representation given, parents have also raised other concerns related to the fee collection from the private schools. “There is no bifurcation or breakup given in terms of fee collection. When asked by parents/representatives from respective schools, the institutes have resorted to clear manipulation of fee structures and are pressuring the parents for payment of unjustified whole years fee apportioned into various instalments,” the representation said.
Parents are also worried that the fee is being collected for the past months of March, April, May too, despite the academic year not having commenced then. The parents are questioning schools allegedly collecting the fee for this time too, during the lockdown period, when there were no guidelines from the government on the same.
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