A nationwide meet of parents and NGOs is scheduled to be held in Delhi on December 28, to strengthen the struggles of parents across the country. Organisations from 11 states, including Maharashtra, will meet to discuss the issues of exorbitant fee hikes and commercialization of education.
Some of the chief topics on the agenda include steps that need to be taken in order to stop the commercialization of education, forcing governments to bring in fee regulation laws, bringing all schools (including minority and unaided) under the ambit of Right to Education, demanding more accountability from affiliation boards, more teeth to child rights commission, and more stringent child safety guidelines.
President of India Wide Parents Association (IWPA) Anubha Sahai said, “Our main demand is for a central fee regulatory body on the lines of those that govern real estate and telecommunication industries. The maximum complaints related to fees are from CBSE schools as their numbers are high. Another key aspect of the agenda is to stop the commercialization of education. Schools are still making parents buy books and stationery from the school. Apart from that the Maharashtra government recently brought a bill to allow private organisations to start schools. Corporations are again going to increase fees. Education is basically the government’s mandate but they are either giving it away to private companies or shutting them down. Instead, they could rope in more NGOs to run these schools.”
Sunil Chaudhari, who has been agitating against fee hikes for two years, “We are going to compare the education policies of Delhi and Maharashtra governments. Where Delhi has upgraded government schools, Maharashtra is shutting them citing poor quality and low student intake. Even if a company opens a school, rules on how to shut the schools are not formulated. Are they going to leave students in the lurch?”
Pune-based group Mahaparents and Orbis Parents’ Association, and Navi Mumbai Parents’ Association will represent Maharashtra in the meeting.