Comply with by-laws, child panel tells CBSE, ICSE schools

The Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has directed all schools to comply with affiliation by-laws, circulars, and regulations of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE).

The directive by commission chairperson K.V. Manoj Kumar comes on a complaint by one Manesh M. that some CBSE and ICSE schools were conducting entrance coaching classes during regular school hours. The complainant alleged that even as students experienced stress owing to pressure from parents and teachers, many parents were forced to spend large sums of money as fee for the two-year entrance coaching programme in schools.

The CBSE chairperson, in a report to the board, admitted that some schools were not adhering to the provisions laid down in the affiliation by-laws of the board and were using school premises for running coaching/tuition classes.

The commission, however, observed that the most of the schools run by different agencies and registered under the CBSE were operating with the aim of making huge profit.

The CBSE and the CISCE also responded that no capitation fee or voluntary donations for gaining admission in a school or for any other purpose should be charged/collected in the name of school and the school should not subject a child or guardians to any screening procedure.

Stressing that each educational institution was bound to obey the rules and regulations of the State, the commission directed the CBSE chairperson and the CISCE chief executive to issue orders for publishing fee structure of schools on the institution website and display it prominently on the notice board of schools.

They should also take steps in consultation with State government’s education officials to constitute a State-level committee to regularise and approve the fee structure of schools in the State.

The commission directed the two boards to issue orders to stop any arbitrary fee hike without approval from parent-teachers’ association (PTA) or a regulatory body till the constitution of a fee regulatory committee in the State.

A special scheme should be introduced to provide scholarships and fee concession to deserving students.

It should be verified whether schools were following the norms for child friendly and differently-abled friendly institutions. It should be inspected if schools had built adequate toilets for students, ramps and accessible toilets for differently abled students, and safe playgrounds for all.

The commission also directed the two school boards to issue orders for appointment of qualified school counsellor in every school to provide academic, social, and emotional support to students.

It sought an action-taken report from the two boards and the General Education Secretary and Director of General Education in the State within 60 days.