TNN, Mumbai Edition, 13th Aug 2008

Mumbai: If the government has its way, then parents will not have to shell out hefty sums for their wards’ education in ICSE and CBSE schools.

The state, which is preparing a policy to govern the functioning of these schools in Maharashtra, has stopped issuing no-objection certificates for new ICSE and CBSE schools pending finalisation of the draft.

This means that around 100 applicants, who have sought NOCs, will have to wait till the government announces the new policy. Of the 3,500 English-medium schools in the state, the ICSE, CBSE institutes number around 500.

Minister of state for school education Hassan Mushrif said, “We are trying to draft a policy that will regulate the functioning of the boards in Maharashtra. No new applicant seeking permission to start ICSE and CBSE schools will be given the NOC until the draft is ready.”

On July 24, the issue of these boards collecting hefty fees from students and not complying with government norms was discussed in the monsoon session of the state legislature. The matter was raised by BJP legislator Chandrashekar Bawankule and Shiv Sena MLA Subhash Desai. Subsequently, speaker Babasaheb Kupekar directed the government to discipline the schools at the earliest.

In consultation with experts, the school education secretary is drafting the said policy. “It will be ready in two months,” said Mushrif.

Taking cognizance of objections from the Opposition, the government has written to the two boards seeking their intervention. “Last week, we wrote to the ICSE and CBSE boards about the erring schools and the need to keep them under check,” the minister said.

The government has also sought legal opinion from the law and judiciary department on whether the state can prohibit admissions to junior colleges for students passing from such schools.

The ICSE and CBSE schools, it is alleged, charge exorbitant fees and even force parents to buy school material from them at prices higher than those in the market.