Hyderabad Schools Parents Association demands fee waiver for three months

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Schools Parents' Association (HSPA) has requested the state school education department to waive the school fees for the first quarter along the lines of the Delhi government.

Delhi government had issued an order on 17 April directing all private schools to not collect fees for the next three months. It had also asked schools to not collect any fees from the parents apart from tuition fees until further orders. Schools have also told not to hike the fees for the academic session 2020-21. The order also stated that schools should "provide access to online education/material/classes to all students without any discrimination" and issue ID and password immediately to provide online education facilities.

On Friday, the HSPA wrote to the state education department requesting it to direct all private schools to waive the fees for three months in view of the Corona virus pandemic in the country. The HSPA even shared a copy of the order issued by the Delhi government.

A member of HSPA, Mrs Seema Agarwal, said, "On behalf of all the parents of Telangana, we request the state government to issue an order directing all private schools to waive off the fees for the first quarter. We request the state to issue an order on the lines of the Delhi government. Many parents have not been receiving their salaries on time. How can schools charge transport fees during this time when schools are closed down? It's really inhuman to increase the school fees when the entire country is going through a difficult time. Schools say they are collecting fees because they have to pay salaries to their staff, but we have seen many teachers complaining of salary cuts and no salaries."

Another member, Mr Pavan, told NewsMeter, "The extended lockdown, layoffs, and pay cuts have made it difficult for many parents to make ends meet. It's high time the government intervenes and supports the parents. There should be absolutely no fee hike and also, the schools shouldn't pressurise parents to pay the fees."