With fees curtailed, Telangana schools want state to financially assist them

Teachers’ forums and some private school teachers allege that school managements have hiked fees — even as they aren’t paying teachers properly.
TRSMA is hoping to consult with the Education Department before the schools reopen with hopes to discuss COVID-19 protocols.
TRSMA is hoping to consult with the Education Department before the schools reopen with hopes to discuss COVID-19 protocols.
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As schools in Telangana are preparing to start physical classes from July 1, questions are being raised about whether private schools in the state are following the government’s order to cap students’ tuition fees. As per the GO 46 of the state government, private schools and unaided schools under the state board, CBSE, ICSE or other international boards are not allowed to increase their fees for the academic year 2020-21, and are also mandated to collect fees only on a monthly basis. However, some sources have told TNM that this is not the reality on the ground. 

Shaik Shabbir Ali, president of the Telangana Private Teachers’ Forum, says hardly any school follows the order. “In the name of online classes, they are collecting fees. Many have also tied up with online education portals and are collecting fees for that. They allow parents to make stalled payments. But they don’t have too much operating cost as the classes are online. But they still don't pay the teachers,” he alleges. A teacher with an international school in Gachibowli meanwhile tells TNM that her school claims to follow the GO 64 price cap, but has still hiked fees by 10%, announcing this as an annual hike.

Y Shekhar Rao, president for Telangana Recognized School Managements Association (TRSMA), an association for 10,000 schools where an estimated 33 lakh students are said to study, says that budget schools in the state have no plans to raise tuition fees and will follow the GO 64, issued in April 2020, placing a cap on school fees being collected. Budget schools charge anywhere between Rs 10,000 (for primary and secondary) and Rs 35,000 (for higher secondary) per year. The average school fee is Rs 25,000. “These are the fees we will be collecting but we can't speak for corporate-run schools. They may or may not follow the GO,” says Shekar, adding that they haven't hiked school fees since 2019-2020.

While TRSMA assures that budget schools in Telangana will adhere to the government order placing a cap on tuition fees, the association adds that schools require assistance from the state to tide over the pandemic induced financial stress. The association is also hoping to consult with the Education Department before the schools reopen with hopes to discuss COVID-19 protocols. TRSMA will be proposing that the classes be held on a shift basis. 

“We can manage with a shift-based system, where some classes will be held in the morning and some at noon and in the evening. The government should be thinking about this. We can also make the classes online on some days and offline on the other days,” Shekar says. TRSMA is expected to table their appeal for shift-based classes at a meeting with the state's Education Minister Sabitha Indira Reddy and department officials soon. 

Private school managements are willing to reopen and follow all COVID-19 precautionary measures but will struggle to stay afloat if there is no state assistance, says the TRSMA president, “When parents can't pay, the school managements can’t pay the teachers or invest in school infrastructure. Earlier in the week, we met officials with the State Level Banking Committee (SLBC), the Finance Minister Harish Rao and the Finance Planning Commission urging them to provide Rs 25 lakh to at least 6,000 schools. It will be a one-year moratorium, and we can repay them in three years after one year,” Shekar says. 

Shabbir Ali says teachers are seeking job security and regular payment. “Over 1 lakh teachers have existed in the teaching sector in the past one year. With a third wave being expected, the classes may get stalled again. We want an assurance that we will be paid. Many teachers now run kirana stores, and have become vegetable vendors to earn a living,” he says. 

Shekar meanwhile does not expect many students to return to classes. “One, the parents are afraid of a third wave. Media reports say it will affect children the most which has spooked many families. Another factor is that the parents of about 68% of the students in the state are Below Poverty Line (BPL). But since 2020, many of these parents have been unable to pay and they are not sending their wards to school. Online classes don't work for them due to lack of funds and resources,” he adds. 

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