CBSE asks schools to disclose fee online
NEW DELHI: Parents will now be able to know the facilities that schools are offering and the fee being charged by them, with the CBSE asking all affiliated schools to put up this information on their websites.
An office memorandum issued by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to schools across the country points out that the affiliation byelaws of the board stipulates that “fees charged should be commensurate with the facilities provided by the institution”.
All schools have been asked to disclose the information on the CBSE’s website and also upload the data on their websites by October 31. The circular issued on September 29 states that the information will be helpful to parents and students to know about the facilities available in the schools.
Recently, the board had received complaints from parents that a number of schools were charging exorbitant fees.
The memorandum said fees charged “should be commensurate with the facilities provided by the institution”, and therefore, as a step towards bringing transparency, the schools should provide information about the facilities.
The board had issued an advisory in June asking its affiliated schools not to charge exorbitant fees from students.
However, as it was advisory in nature, the parents said that not many school had followed it.
“This is a mandatory disclosure and the circular has been sent to all the principals to follow it strictly. The information will be uploaded periodically on half-yearly basis,” said a senior official.
The advisory was issued by the CBSE after the human resource development (HRD) ministry received several complaints from parents over arbitrary fee hike and capitation fee charged by schools.
Taking serious note of the complaints, the CBSE advisory has asked schools to strictly adhere to the relevant byelaws of the board and ensure proper functioning of the school management.
“We are also in the process of reviewing our present byelaws, and the information provided by the schools will help CBSE devise further plans,” said a source.