Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The deadline for private schools in Madhya Pradesh to submit fee and curriculum details was June 24 and has now expired. Out of over 34,000 private schools in the state, only 16,000 submitted the details online. Schools that failed to comply with the order will now face fivefold increase in fine that is up to Rs 25,000.
The government has provision for penalties for private schools. Schools with an enrolment of more than 2,000 students will be fined Rs 5,000 for missing the deadline, which can increase to Rs 25,000 after the deadline. Schools with enrolment between 1,001 and 2,000 students will have to pay fine of Rs 3,000 that may increase to Rs 15,000. Schools with enrolment between 501 and 1,000 students will be fined Rs 2,000 if they miss the deadline, with the penalty increasing to Rs 10,000 thereafter.
Under Madhya Pradesh Private School Act, 2020, Jabalpur district administration uncovered irregularities in the fees of private schools in the district. Action was taken against 11 schools by the district administration. Following this, the school education department issued letters to all district collectors to take action against private schools at the state level. Initially, all private schools were required to upload fees and other information online by June 8, which was later extended to June 24.
District education officer Anjani Kumar Tripathi told Free Press that fine, which would be five times more, would be imposed on schools that havenít submitted fee details. 'We are regularly holding the meeting, and our campaign against school hiking fees unnecessarily will continue till June 30,' he added.
CM on fee hike
Chief minister Mohan Yadav earlier instructed school education department to launch a district-level campaign to address issues related to fee hike and to identify fake or duplicate ISBN books. Publishers and book depot owners found violating regulations will face action, he had said.
Who followed
Box: In Bhopal district, 73 out of 111 CBSE schools, 887 out of 900 state government schools, all 6 ICSE schools, 1 international school, and 1 other school have submitted fee and other details online.
