School study turns dearer

It was back to school for students in the city after summer vacation when educational institutions reopened on Friday morning, but this academic year parents are feeling the pinch of increased school fee.

Accompanied by their parents, most students reluctantly went to the schools in new uniforms, water bottles and bags. Areas like Abids, Dilsukhnagar, Ameerpet, Kukatpally and Secunderabad, which are replete with schools, came alive with the students’ buzz.

With students dropping in at the schools in auto-rickshaws, school buses and in cars, traffic was affected at Abids, S.P. Road and other main roads with vehicles parked on the roadside.

“After summer vacation, it is always good to go to school, since we can share quality time with friends and have fun,” says P. Meenakshi, a sixth standard student of Vivekananda High School in Kukatpally.

However, parents are a worried lot owing to the increase in fee structure in different schools. There are over 1,500 State government recognised private and aided schools in the city. Depending on the facilities provided, most schools collect a monthly fee ranging from Rs. 650 to Rs.850 but this academic year, managements have increased the school fee by almost 50 per cent. And for corporate schools sky is the limit.

Violating the rules, most schools collect donations and special fees. This apart, several school managements sell notebooks, bags, uniforms, pencils and stationery materials on the school premises and insist the parents to purchase such material from the schools itself, says Manohar Prasad, a bookshop owner in Ameerpet.

“To ensure quality education for our kids, we are left with no choice but to act according to the school managements’ rules. It is high time for authorities to frame policies and control abnormal fee collection,” says Prakasa Rao, a parent.

On the contrary, District Educational Officer Victoria Deva Kumari said parents could lodge a complaint with Collector or at the District Education Office on the matter.