Morung Express News
Dimapur | October 24
The decision of a reputed higher secondary school in Dimapur to increase admission and monthly fees from the next academic session and subsequent request from the parents to revoke the decision followed by the school authority asking those parents to collect Transfer Certificate (TC) of their ward/child led to an impasse even as a meeting between the two sides on Thursday remained inconclusive.
On October 22, 2019, parents numbering 348 signed a representation and submitted to the school stating that the admission and monthly fees were being enhanced every year without any corresponding improvement in the facilities being offered. In this regard, the signatories requested the school authority to keep in abeyance the enhancement of fees for a period of not less than three years and that further enhancement be done after prior consultation with the parents.
Following the representation, the school authority made phone calls to the 348 parents unceremoniously asking them to come and collect TC of their respective wards on October 24.
On Thursday, the parents and the school authority held a meeting for around three hours to discuss the issue. During the meeting, the parents urged the school authority to explain why they were asked to come and collect TC for their wards. To this, the school explained that the parents had “illegally” come to the school and passed derogatory remarks against the Principal and also verbally and physically assaulted the teachers.
This explanation was met with immediate rejection from the parents who demanded that the person/s and assaulted teachers be identified to support the allegation. However, the school authority remained silent on this. The parents also alleged that their children were harassed by the teachers who made them stand in the classrooms and told them to collect TC.
On the enhancement of fees, the school authority explained that the need to meet the expenditure of paying salaries to the teachers and other expenses relating to the school had led to a decision to enhance the fees.
The parents also expressed displeasure at the presence of security forces in the meeting stating that it made the parents feel that they had come to the school with ulterior motives.
Meanwhile, the school authority said that the contents of the representation cannot be met and that it would stick to the decision of enhancing the fees.
Dimapur Naga Students’ Union (DNSU) representatives who also attended the meeting appealed the school to reconsider their decision and leave room for further discussion on the issue. DNSU warned against victimizing the students and affecting their career out of the current issue.
Another meeting has been fixed on Friday at 9 am between representatives of the parents and the school authority to discuss the issue.
It may be mentioned here that the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE) guidelines (General Rules) had stated that “the schools should consult parents through parent representatives before revising the fees.”
