OLPS charging Rs 10,000 for books provided free of cost by the government and is not even giving receipts in return, claim parents
A group of parents, whose children study at the Our Lady of Perpetual Succour High School (OLPS), has alleged that the Chembur-based school has asked its students to pay Rs 10,000 as “book money”.
They said the money was being accepted only in cash and the school was issuing no receipts in return. The parents have now approached an NGO, Forum for Fairness in Education, regarding the matter.
The complaint registered with the NGO stated that the school has made it mandatory for students to buy course books and uniforms from the school, that too at a hefty price.
The price of books varies from Rs 9,400-10,700 depending on the class. In addition, the school is not providing parents with any receipts of these purchases.
A circular issued by the school on April 5, a copy of which is with Mirror, said the books will be given to students on the day of declaration of results.
After mentioning the amount to be paid, it further directed parents to bring the exact change and to write the ward’s roll number, standard and division, in pencil, on every Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 note. The cost of the uniform has also been specified.
“This is not the first time that the school is charging hefty sums of money. Last year also they charged every student Rs 6,000 and did not provide with any receipts. There are many poor students studying in the school. Some parents have two to three kids studying in the same school. Another problem is that the school is not even providing with the break up of the amount,” said a parent.
The parents are also contending that since the school is aided, textbooks for secondary section are provided by the government for free.
When contacted, school manager Paul Julius said, “The Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) was consulted and everybody had agreed on this decision. We are not forcing anyone to buy things from us. If the parents had a problem, they should have approached the PTA or the management to solve the issue, instead of directly approaching the NGO.”
Jayant Jain, president of the Forum for Fairness in Education, said, “We had filed a PIL in high court in 2004. The court had then passed an order that no school will sell books, uniforms, stationery items, etc. in the premises and that the schools won’t force parents to purchase these from a specific shop. The government had issued GR to this effect. But most schools, including aided ones, are openly selling books and collecting double the market price. We have advised the parents to file an FIR.”
Courtesy:
Mumbai Mirror Bureau mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=MIRRORNEW&BaseHref=MMIR/2013/04/25&PageLabel=5&EntityId=Ar00500&ViewMode=HTML
A group of parents, whose children study at the Our Lady of Perpetual Succour High School (OLPS), has alleged that the Chembur-based school has asked its students to pay Rs 10,000 as “book money”.
They said the money was being accepted only in cash and the school was issuing no receipts in return. The parents have now approached an NGO, Forum for Fairness in Education, regarding the matter.
The complaint registered with the NGO stated that the school has made it mandatory for students to buy course books and uniforms from the school, that too at a hefty price.
The price of books varies from Rs 9,400-10,700 depending on the class. In addition, the school is not providing parents with any receipts of these purchases.
A circular issued by the school on April 5, a copy of which is with Mirror, said the books will be given to students on the day of declaration of results.
After mentioning the amount to be paid, it further directed parents to bring the exact change and to write the ward’s roll number, standard and division, in pencil, on every Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 note. The cost of the uniform has also been specified.
“This is not the first time that the school is charging hefty sums of money. Last year also they charged every student Rs 6,000 and did not provide with any receipts. There are many poor students studying in the school. Some parents have two to three kids studying in the same school. Another problem is that the school is not even providing with the break up of the amount,” said a parent.
The parents are also contending that since the school is aided, textbooks for secondary section are provided by the government for free.
When contacted, school manager Paul Julius said, “The Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) was consulted and everybody had agreed on this decision. We are not forcing anyone to buy things from us. If the parents had a problem, they should have approached the PTA or the management to solve the issue, instead of directly approaching the NGO.”
Jayant Jain, president of the Forum for Fairness in Education, said, “We had filed a PIL in high court in 2004. The court had then passed an order that no school will sell books, uniforms, stationery items, etc. in the premises and that the schools won’t force parents to purchase these from a specific shop. The government had issued GR to this effect. But most schools, including aided ones, are openly selling books and collecting double the market price. We have advised the parents to file an FIR.”
Courtesy:
Mumbai Mirror Bureau mirrorfeedback@timesgroup.com
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=MIRRORNEW&BaseHref=MMIR/2013/04/25&PageLabel=5&EntityId=Ar00500&ViewMode=HTML
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