New Delhi:
After undergoing a rigorous selection procedure, parents of tiny tots aiming for seats in top nursery schools in Delhi say they are now facing the biggest hurdle -- 'donation fees' which ranged from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh.
While these fees left many baffling, others rue that the non-transparent points system and early results reduced their kids' chance to get a seat in schools of their choice.
"A top school in Vasant Kunj has asked for donation of Rs 100,000 for securing our ward's admission," writes a parent on admissionsnursery.com, a website where parents share their admission-related experiences.
"Yes, they asked for an astronomical amount of Rs 1 lakh. Also we are asked to keep mobiles and bags outside so that one may not record their conversations," claims R S Chadha.
Another parent Vikram writes that a top school having its presence throughout the national Capital has "asked for Rs 5 lakh for a seat under its management quota".
Sumit Vohra, who runs the website, concurs, saying many parents have complained about this trend adopted by almost all private schools in Delhi and NCR.
"This is the true face of the Capital's education system, or you can say the commercialisation of the system," Vohra said.
The Directorate of Education (DoE), he says, is very strict this year but till someone does not bring the problem to their notice how it will take any action.
Delhi Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely had earlier said he was aware of violations but his department could only act against a school if it receives complaints from parents.
"If they show us a receipt, we can act on it. Most parents don't come forward," Lovely had said.
The Federation of Public Schools, which has around 300 schools under its ambit in Delhi, also acknowledged the issue.
"We have received some complaints against some schools demanding money without receipt. But when we intervened, the schools agreed to give receipts," says R P Mallik, chairman of the federation, without naming the schools.
He, however, says if parents come out with evidence, "we will take action against the schools concerned".
When contacted, several schools denied such reports and said they always issued proper receipts for payments.
"We give receipt of the full amount of the fees deposited by parents," says Rekha Bakshi, principal of Vasant Valley School.
"Who says, we are not giving receipts? Everything is very transparent here although we have a higher fee-structure. And then, if you want better education and service, you need to pay more," says an official of Noida's Step By Step School.
Another major hurdle the parents are facing is the early publication of results by some schools. The DoE has mandated that no schools should come out with their results before February 1.
But a number of schools have declared their results (first list) much before the stipulated date, leaving parents with no choice but to deposit the admission fees.
"The rule of nursery admission is to block at least one seat. You pay the fees to do so. But when you want to opt out of the school, there are chances you won't get the money back," says Vohra.
"I was asked to pay Rs 70,000 as donation fees within two days. But the school in Mayur Vihar said if I opt out of it, they won't be any refund of the money," says software professional Neetu Singh.
As per DoE 'refund policy', one can get the fees refunded within one month of payment. But as most of the
schools don't give receipts for the donation or development fees, the refund of the money depend up on their mercy.
But Mallik says the schools, which have published their results early, must have informed the DoE. Many schools also said they have got the nod from DoE.
Coming to the point system, parents complain schools don't have a uniform points system as advised by the DoE.
Schools are acting according to the autonomy given to them by the high court, which in a 2006 ruling allowed schools to chalk out different parameters for 20 points as per their discretion.
However, the schools need to inform the DoE and make the criteria public, which most schools are not doing at present, says Vohra, adding that "until the authorities and schools sit together and come out with a solution, the mess is not going to be cleared soon".