Srinagar, Feb 15: Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir (PSAJK) passed directions to all its member schools to cap any fee hike at a maximum of 10% till the formal order from Fee Fixation Committee (FFC) comes out.
The association made the move after receiving complaints from various parents about unreasonable fee hike by various schools.
The Fee Fixation Committee, which is yet to have a chairman, is non-functional and the association has come up with the directions to avoid the over-charging by some schools.
The association said that the situation has arisen as the Fee Fixation Committee is not functioning which has led to the confusion among the schools.
“Some schools have been getting signals to increase the fee and they are doing the same while others are waiting,” said a spokesperson of PSAJK.
The association said that the academic calendar has experienced a big change this year. “Even at this crucial juncture, the government is displaying inefficiency by ignoring FFC. In the absence of a clear-cut directive from the FFC or any other government agency, schools feel they have got the green signal to increase fees according to their own norms. They too are under stress which has made a situation,” said a spokesperson of PSAJK.
The association further said that till the FFC starts functioning, they are trying to balance by offering a short-term measure.
“As of now, no school can increase the fee by more than 10 percent. We are trying to maintain a balance. Going by the current situation our schools are in dire need of finances. The inflation has broken the back of our school, but we have to take the parents in consideration as well. So as a middle path we have capped the hike at 10% till the formal orders from the FFC,” said the spokesperson.