MUMBAI: Feuds between schools and parents over fees are turning increasingly bitter . A woman whose two children study at Ecole Mondiale World School at Juhu had to readmit them there in August after their names were struck off the roll for late payment of fees. In the bargain, she had to pay an additional Rs 10 lakh-about Rs 3.8 lakh more due to a revision in the fees, and a one-time payment of around Rs 6.5 lakh.
The parent admits that the cheque she wrote reached the school late but blames it on a misunderstanding . What upset her is that Ecole Mondiale did not inform her about its decision to remove her 9-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter. Also , she says, it failed to provide her a copy of the school's policies and the contact details of the trustees .
Woman accuses school of 'expelling' kids without warning
Shaina Malhotra (name changed) says she was annually paying about Rs 20 lakh as fees for her two children before they were struck off the roll of Ecole Mondiale World School over late payment of fees. "This time, in the name of readmitting my children, I was asked to shell out close to Rs 30 lakh," she says.
Ecole Mondiale says it sent two reminders to Malhotra about the pending fees and tried calling her but her phone was unavailable. Subsequently , with no response, the school deleted the two pupils' names from their roll.
"If she accepted the readmission then (in August), why is she protesting now? Besides, all parents get copies of school policies at the time of admission, so why these complaints?" says Mahesh Gupta, manager, Ecole Mondiale .
The parent admits that the cheque she wrote reached the school late but blames it on a misunderstanding . What upset her is that Ecole Mondiale did not inform her about its decision to remove her 9-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter. Also , she says, it failed to provide her a copy of the school's policies and the contact details of the trustees .
Woman accuses school of 'expelling' kids without warning
Shaina Malhotra (name changed) says she was annually paying about Rs 20 lakh as fees for her two children before they were struck off the roll of Ecole Mondiale World School over late payment of fees. "This time, in the name of readmitting my children, I was asked to shell out close to Rs 30 lakh," she says.
Ecole Mondiale says it sent two reminders to Malhotra about the pending fees and tried calling her but her phone was unavailable. Subsequently , with no response, the school deleted the two pupils' names from their roll.
"If she accepted the readmission then (in August), why is she protesting now? Besides, all parents get copies of school policies at the time of admission, so why these complaints?" says Mahesh Gupta, manager, Ecole Mondiale .
"She has been threatening us to refund the fee differential or face the music."
The saga began on June 1 this year, when the school broke for vacation. The date was also the deadline for the payment of fees for the academic year commencing August 1. Malhotra, who is an NRI and shuttles between homes in London and Mumbai , says she sent a cheque through her office here before she left for London. "But due to some miscommunication , the cheque reached the school 18 days late. And without informing me about their action, my children's names were not considered for the academic year," she says.
On August 1, when the children went back to school after their return from London , they found their names deleted. With little choices left, Malhotra readmitted the children in Ecole Mondiale.
But the difference in fee numbers was significant. While she was earlier paying Rs 10.58 lakh and Rs 8.98 lakh as her daughter and son's fee respectively, this time she had to fork out Rs 11.68 lakh per child. She also had to give Rs 3.15 lakh per child as onetime admission charge besides Rs 12,000 as application form fees. In all, that is a difference of around Rs 10 lakh.
READING THE LAW
The state has formulated and, it says, implemented the Maharashtra Educational Institutions (regulation of collection of fee) Bill, 2011, though the president's approval is still awaited
Under this law, schools have to get their fee structure approved by the education department after submitting their balance sheets. The fees cannot exceed the amount authorized
Approval of Parent-Teachers Associations (PTA) is needed before a hike in school fees. If a PTA fails to agree on it within the stipulated time, the school is allowed to collect the fee of the previous year plus a 15% hike The factors to be considered while computing fees include available infrastructure, facilities provided, expenditure on administration and maintenance, yearly salaries, etc
The saga began on June 1 this year, when the school broke for vacation. The date was also the deadline for the payment of fees for the academic year commencing August 1. Malhotra, who is an NRI and shuttles between homes in London and Mumbai , says she sent a cheque through her office here before she left for London. "But due to some miscommunication , the cheque reached the school 18 days late. And without informing me about their action, my children's names were not considered for the academic year," she says.
On August 1, when the children went back to school after their return from London , they found their names deleted. With little choices left, Malhotra readmitted the children in Ecole Mondiale.
But the difference in fee numbers was significant. While she was earlier paying Rs 10.58 lakh and Rs 8.98 lakh as her daughter and son's fee respectively, this time she had to fork out Rs 11.68 lakh per child. She also had to give Rs 3.15 lakh per child as onetime admission charge besides Rs 12,000 as application form fees. In all, that is a difference of around Rs 10 lakh.
READING THE LAW
The state has formulated and, it says, implemented the Maharashtra Educational Institutions (regulation of collection of fee) Bill, 2011, though the president's approval is still awaited
Under this law, schools have to get their fee structure approved by the education department after submitting their balance sheets. The fees cannot exceed the amount authorized
Approval of Parent-Teachers Associations (PTA) is needed before a hike in school fees. If a PTA fails to agree on it within the stipulated time, the school is allowed to collect the fee of the previous year plus a 15% hike The factors to be considered while computing fees include available infrastructure, facilities provided, expenditure on administration and maintenance, yearly salaries, etc
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