Assam initiates steps to regulate private school fee

The much delayed move to regularize  private school fee has taken off as the Stategovernment has  finally moved a proposalto constitute a committee to regulate the fee structure in private educationalinstitutions.

The Fee Regulatory Committee –that will comprise at least five members – will be headed by a chairperson whowould either be a retired district judge or a senior civil servant or seniorpolice officer. The panel will also have a chartered accountant, a civilengineer, a representative from a non-government educational institution and anacademician. Their term will be for three years. The first Fee RegulatoryCommittee is likely to be notified in a few days.

The move to form the panel comesmore than a year after the government passed The Assam Non-GovernmentEducational Institutions (Regulation of Fees) Act, which envisages formation ofthe committee. Officials blamed laxity on the part of the directorate staff forthe delay in constitution of the panel.

While determining the fee to bepayable by the students in non-government institutions, the committee will havethe power to examine the fee structure of a school along with all relevantdocuments and books of accounts for scrutiny.

"The panel will verify if the feeproposed by the non-government educational institution is justified or whetherit amounts to profiteering or charging exorbitant fee. After examining theexisting fee structure, it will either approve the existing fee or determinethe fee which can be charged from students by a non-government institution," TheEducation Department official said.

The committee will also have thepower to hear complaints (including suo motu) regarding collection of excessfee by a private institution. It can also initiate penal action against privateschools.

The maximum fee limit aninstitution can charge will be determined at the beginning of every academicsession, according to the Act. The committee will take into account variousfactors, like location of the school, investment incurred to set it up,infrastructure made available in the institution, expenditure on administrationand maintenance, strength of students, qualification of teaching staff,expenditure incurred on students, etc.