Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has issued notices to both state and Central authorities in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the exorbitant fees charged by private unaided schools.
The bench, comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J Sreenivas Rao, was hearing a PIL filed by Hyderabad resident Keethineedi Akhil Sri Guru Teja. The court directed the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the Department of School Education to respond within four weeks.
The PIL accuses both the Union and state governments of failing to regulate private unaided schools, which allegedly charge exorbitant fees due to a lack of inspections by District Education Officers (DEOs).
The petitioner claims that the state government’s Government Order No. 1 Education, issued on January 1, 1994, outlining the fee structure for such schools, is not being enforced.
Additionally, out of 11,501 private schools in the state, only 50 have submitted their annual administration reports to the School Education Department, according to the PIL.
In addition to these concerns, the petitioner has requested that the court direct the state and Union governments to establish a committee to regulate fees in private schools.
The court has adjourned the matter for four weeks to allow the respondents time to file their counter affidavits.
