HYDERABAD: School education in the city is one of the most expensive in India. At least, so it seems from a scan of the fee structure across major cities in the country.

TOI's analysis reveals that Hyderabad schools charge exorbitant amounts in the name of annual fee, which hovers anywhere between Rs 60,000 and Rs 4.5 lakh. In comparison, schools based in cities such as Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Chandigarh and Pune, rarely have fees crossing the Rs 1.5 lakh mark.

"In Delhi, most CBSE schools do not charge more than Rs 1.5 lakh towards annual school fee. Even if schools decide to hike their fee, they are compelled to inform the Directorate of School Education before taking the step," said Ashok Pandey, chairman of National Progressive Schools' Conference in Delhi, adding that the annual fee hike in schools in the capital city is less than 10%.

To add to this strict regulation is a new Bill passed by the Delhi government (Verification of Accounts and Refund of Excess Fee) in 2015, according to which schools will be verified by the government annually and those charging excess fee will be liable to make refunds.

Sadly, educationalists rue, such norms are missing in Telangana. "It is due to the sheer indifference of the state government in regulating the recurring fee hikes that schools arbitrarily charge huge amounts," said an observer.

In Bengaluru too, that's not the case. "Mid-level schools in the city, where most students belonging to middle class and upper middle class families go, charge an annual fee of Rs 40,000 to Rs 90,000," said Mansoor Ali Khan, secretary, Management of Independent CBSE Schools Association in Bengaluru.

He further added that schools in Karnataka hike the fee by 15% once in three years. According to the draft rules proposed by the Department of Public Instruction, the maximum fee (inclusive of tuition, non-tuition and special development) that a top school can charge in Bengaluru is around Rs 22,000.

The scene is much the same in Pune, Lucknow and Chandigarh, where the annual fee is limited between Rs 20,000 and Rs 1 lakh.

What also works for states like Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra is the presence of a state-appointed committee that fixes the fee. In Chennai, for instance, the annual fee for primary education is not more than Rs 20,000.

"It is startling to see how the rates in Hyderabad are so high. Since 2009, CBSE schools have hiked their annual fee by almost 100%. Had the government monitored the fee hike, parents wouldn't have had to burn a hole in their pockets," opined Jyoti Kulwant, a parent.

Such is their plight that parents in Telangana have now been forced to to take the legal route. "We appeal to the state government to pull up all those schools that have been violating GO 91 that categorically limits the admission fee to Rs 5,000," said Ravi Kumar, a member of Hyderabad School Parents Association.

Average annual fee in mid-level CBSE schools

Hyderabad: Rs 60,000 to Rs 4.5 lakh

New Delhi: Rs 40,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh

Bengaluru: Rs 40,000 to Rs 90,000

Chennai: Less than Rs 40,000



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