Private schools fleecing parents in admission season

PESHAWAR: The private schools are fleecing parents as admission season is in full swing, but the Private School Regulatory Authority (PSRA) has failed to implement its directives or take steps to provide relief to the people.

All the private schools are charging the parents heavily in the name of admission, promotion and annual fee, security charges, miscellaneous charges and a number of other heads. Also, every school has its own sets of books and uniforms that are costly for the parents to afford.

A survey revealed that a normal school these days is taking at least Rs20,000 from each student as admission fee. A set of books is available for not less than Rs5,000 for students of any class. Along with school bag, uniform and other necessities, the normal charges for admitting a child in school or changing school costs at least Rs30,000 to Rs50,000. The amount would obviously multiply considering the number of children in a family.

“My two daughters are studying at a normal school and they are not new in the school. Even then, it cost me Rs20,000 for books and promotion fee only. I will deposit the tuition fee and other charges later. I also didn’t buy bags, uniform and shoes for them as yet,” said Mohammad Khursheed, who was unwilling to disclose the name of the school out of fear that it could create problems for his daughters. They don’t give even a single penny concession on the books and uniform, he added.

The KPSRA, in light of a previous decision of the Peshawar High Court, had banned the annual charges and promotion fee. In view of that decision, which was later reviewed by the Supreme Court in December 2018, and subsequent KPSRA notification, the summer vacations fee last year had either not been charged or returned to parents. The summer vacation fee was, however, collected again after a review petition was filed in the Supreme Court by the wealthy and powerful private schools. The schools also misinterpreted the Supreme Court decision as well as the KPSRA directives.

“All the schools, which have received fee during last summer vacations, should adjust the same in future fee or refund half of such fee within two months,” said the KPSRA’s revised circular issued on January 21, 2009.

But the private schools did not implement this decision. If parents dared to ask the schools where the children were studying for refund, they were bluntly told that the decision was implementable only in those schools where the fee was more than Rs5,000.

Kashmir Khan, whose children are studying in a leading school chain in the province, said that he submitted an application to seek refund or adjustment of the summer vacation fee, but the principal turned down his application. He said he later lodged a complaint with the KPSRA, which also wrote to the school concerned but to no avail.

The KPSRA in its revised notification has asked the schools charging fee above Rs5,000 to reduce it by 20 percent. It said the annual increase in fee should not be more than five to eight percent, adding the siblings should be given 20 percent rebate.

This circular was wrongly interpreted. The sibling concession is not being given in the schools on different pretexts.

The most urgent problem the parents are facing is the heavy admission and annual fee and the unbearable prices of books and uniform. The parents have asked the provincial government and the KPSRA to take notice of the situation and provide them relief.

The director general of KPSRA, Sardar Asad Haroon, when reached for his comments said that he was new to the job and would soon take briefings about the situation from his staff.