Punjab govt takes vital decisions for education dept for academic session 2020-21
Punjab government under the leadership of Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has taken some vital decisions to ensure that the curriculum of the students for academic session 2020-21 does not suffer under any circumstances, said Education Minister Vijay Inder Singla.
He said that no school can charge any fees if it has not provided its students with education through online medium. Meanwhile, only those schools which are providing education through online classes cannot charge the students with anything beyond tuition fees, he said. The schools cannot charge any additional fees in the name of transportation, building and infrastructure development, meals, mess, uniforms, etc. Also, no school can expel a child in case he fails to pay his tuition fees on time, Vijay Inder Singla said.
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He added that "We have also provisioned that parents can pay tuition fees on a monthly basis instead of a quarterly basis so that parents of the students are not burdened." Adding, he said that "No school can increase any fees beyond their structure that was there in the academic session of 2019-20 that means – No Fee Hike.
Also, the schools have been directed that they can neither stop nor reduce the salaries of their teachers under any circumstances. Likewise, no school can lay-off their teachers or staff during this time under any pretext. Vijay Inder Singla further said that "We are already monitoring the situation and an action committee has also been formed to punish the schools violating the laid norms."
He also said that the District Education Officers (DEO) will receive detailed guidelines from the Education Department to ensure that all the private schools under their jurisdiction comply with the government orders.
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"The interest of the students is of primary concern, but these new guidelines shall help in striking a balance by allowing private schools to charge tuition fees so that they can meet their monthly expenses and pay their staff timely," he added. This order is in line with the guidelines passed by a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court under similar circumstances.
-PTC News
