Education is increasingly becoming dearer in the city. State board schools are making way for other boards like ICSE, CBSE, IGCSE and IB, or are co-existing with these boards. The student-teacher ratio in such boards is much smaller, the facilities better and the range of choices vaster. Hence, the cost of running these schools, and consequently the fees, goes up. Experts say that the curriculum in these schools is based more on application and experimentation, rather than the run-of-the-mill theoretical education provided in state boards. This is what is attracting many parents to these boards.

From January 2018 till date, 10 schools have received a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the education department to launch new boards on their premises. Some 50 such certificates were given last year to schools that wanted to switch their board affiliation to CBSE or ICSE.

DNA explores the phenomenon of this aversion to state board schools, how parents feel about the schools switching boards and the arbitrary fee hikes that have followed in the wake of this.

Parents in the city are tending towards sending their children to schools run by the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and International Baccalaureate (IB), to get quality education. As such, schools run by the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE), as well as Marathi-medium schools, are shutting down and getting replaced with the other boards which are usually English-medium. But that has entailed fee hikes.

Many parents say the government is not doing enough to control fees, and have demonstrated their disgruntlement with protests on the streets and outside schools in recent years. The English-medium schools that have opened in place of the state board schools are CBSE-run, and the fees are rising beyond the reach of the common man, they claim. If the monthly state board school fee for a primary student is around Rs 1,700, a central board school charges Rs 6,000-8,000.

Change of board

Recently, parents of students at two schools, Hansraj Morarji Public School in Andheri and Shardashram Vidya Mandir in Dadar, where cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar studied, raised a protest when the school managements announced sudden closure of the state board to start ICSE board for currently enrolled students.

After political intervention, the management of Hansraj Morarji promised that they would run the school with both the boards simultaneously. But sources from the school claim the management may soon shut the state board entirely. When DNA reached out to the management, we were told that the principal was travelling and hence unavailable for comment.

Parents from Shardashram Vidya Mandir, on the other hand, are pushing for continuation of the state board. They approached the Yuva Sena, the Shiv Sena's youth wing.

The Parents Teachers Association (PTA) committee members initially approached the civic education department seeking to know the rationale behind the move. They then approached the deputy director of higher education to ask on what basis an NOC was issued to the school to start ICSE board when the strength of state board's SSC students is high both in English and Marathi media.

Incidentally, Shardashram Vidya Mandir is the school where cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar studied from 1984 to 1989.The school also boasts of alumni such as Vinod Kambli and Ajit Agarkar.

BMC education officials shot off letters to the school in April and May asking it if it has the permission to start ICSE board from the authorities and the PTA executive committee, if it is aware that BMC education department has the mandate to keep the state board open till May 2020, and if it will run both the boards together or cease the operations of one.

One of the parents from Shardashram said, "We are waiting for the school to give us its final decision about the board affiliation. It has issued a circular to parents whose children have now graduated to Class I. The fee of two terms is Rs 60,000, which not everyone can afford."

When a school transitions from a state board to a central board, the student-teacher ratio changes from something like 55-1 to 30-1, and the school demands more fees to justify the new board affiliation. The facilities that central board offers also add to the fee burden.

Sainath Durge, BMC education committee member and Yuva Sena core committee member, said, "We are not against starting the ICSE board, but the way SSC board English-medium schools with a good strength of students are getting converted to schools run by other boards is a major concern. The state education department should carefully investigate before giving an NOC. The middle and lower income class parents cannot afford private or other boards schools' fees."

Utpal Sanghvi High and IES School run state and central boards simultaneously, as they have large premises, just like Shardashram.

Toothless

The Fee Regulation Committee has not been effective in curbing arbitrary fee hikes, given the series f protests that Mumbai, as well as other cities, have witnesses.

In a recent across-the-board nationwide survey by Delhi-based Local Circles, 29 per cent of the 4,000 parents surveyed in Maharashtra said the fee had gone up by 10-20 per cent; 18 per cent said the increase was over 20 per cent. Around 87 per cent of parents from across the country said their state governments failed to regulate fees. The findings were published in this paper on April 12.

For the last two years, DNA has written about fee hike issues at St Joseph School in Panvel, Vibgyor High in Kharghar and Rustomjee Troopers in Dahisar. In March, some 50 parents from different states came together to protest in front of Vidhan Bhavan against the annual arbitrary fee hikes.

The Maharashtra Educational Institutions (Regulation of Collection of Fee) Act, 2011, is in effect since December, 2014, but proven to be ineffective, parents say. According to this Act, unaided private schools have to get PTA executive committee's approval six months before the new academic session.

Last year, the Bombay High Court barred parents from approaching the Divisional Fee Regulation Committee (DFRC), allowing only schools to do so. The six-member committee headed by retired justice VG Palshikar submitted their suggestions on the Act in December to school education minister Vinod Tawde. One of them was to allow PTAs to approach the DFRC if a majority of the members are against the fee hike.

Anubha Sahai, president of Indiawide Parents' Association, said, "Parents have no choice but to put their children in other boards because of two reasons. One is so their children do better in competitive entrance exams, and the other is the substandard quality of education in our state board schools. And the reason they are protesting is the unjustified and exorbitant fee hikes that schools charge every year. The Kejriwal government in Delhi ordered account audits of 1,700 private schools in the state. If our ministers also order the same for our state schools, they will stop increasing fees every year."

Gaurav Kadam, a resident of Panvel whose ward goes to a state board school is protesting the fee hike for two years. Kadam's annual income is around Rs 4 lakh of which Rs 1 lakh goes towards putting his two daughters through school — fees, books, uniforms and so on. "We wouldn't have minded the fees if they'd have given our children quality education. Schools charge Rs 12,000 for a picnic and take children out of the state. Why? What is the value this costly picnic adds to my daughters' education? We have to compromise on so many things, like going out or spending on things."

According to Kadam, the school's fee hike matter is with the DFRC and the parents are awaiting the expert committee's changes in the fee regulation Act.

Another parent, Prasad Tulaskar, whose son passed out of Class X last year, is still fighting out the fee hike matter with the school. Last year, he spent almost Rs 70,000 towards his two children's school fees. "My sons are in two different schools and one cleared SSC last year. Last year, I did not pay his school fee because as per rules, the school cannot increase fees every year. But when time came to collect the leaving certificate and the SSC results of my son, I had to pay it and the school charged me late fees, stating there is a government resolution on this. If the government audits all schools, then unreasonable fee hikes will stop."

PTA FORUM

‘State has stopped grants’

Arundhati Chavan, president of United Forum, PTA spoke about why state board schools are shutting down:

“There are several reasons behind state board schools closing down. Some of them provide poor quality education. Proper infrastructure is missing.

“The government has stopped giving non-salary grants to the schools for the past many years, because of which they are finding it difficult to maintain the school. Not only are they unable to bear maintenance charges, but they can’t afford other activities.

“Every now and then, the government sends government resolutions to schools to follow, and this interference has irritated schools.

“State board has rote learning. On the other hand, students of other boards beat our students in entrance and competitive tests. Even lower middle classed now want their children to study in non-state boards.”

ACTIVIST

‘Parents cannot be looted’

Jayant Jain, president, Forum for Fairness in Education

Why do you think state board schools are shutting down?

There are different aspects as parents are looking at quality education, which is not there in state board schools. The infrastructure and teachers are also not up to the mark.

What about school fee, which is a matter of contention with the parents?

Every parent wants quality education for their child, but that does not mean they should be looted. Fees should be reasonable, not exorbitant.

Why are parents, drawn to these boards, protesting at the same time?

Schools with other boards have more activities for children, more options to choose from. But the schools are not being transparent with them when it comes to charging fees, which are so high.

STATE OFFICIAL

‘Can’t decide their fee’

Rajendra Ahire, Deputy Director, School Education, Maharashtra

Why are state board schools shutting down?

If they are closing down, it is due to the attraction of parents towards other boards.

What does the education department consider before giving an NOC to schools transitioning to another board?

The NOC is given by the state government. It basically checks if the required infrastructure is in place to accommodate the board.

Are state government rules applicable to schools affiliated with central or international boards?

Not all of them apply to the schools. For eg, the curriculum of state board is not followed by other boards. We cannot decide their fee structure. Fee issues are handled by the fee regulation committee.

SCHOOL ASSOCIATION

‘Int’l boards offer more’

Dr Kavita Aggarwal, chairperson, Members of International Schools Association (MISA), which has 95-100 schools across India

“I cannot comment on why state board schools are closing down. But it is good to hear that the state board is also coming up with international curriculum for their students.

“It will take time for state boards to match the parents’ expectations, like all-round development of students. In international boards, all kinds of sports are offered to students — football, volleyball, athletics. State board curriculum is more theoretical than about practical application.

“Parents want the child to be ready for all type of challenges and have all-round personality development through art, theater, sports. They want the child to be ready with core problem-solving skills and higher-order thinking.”