Delhi govt releases draft school fee bill; to be tabled in Assembly

The draft bill, which was approved by the Delhi Cabinet in April, covers all the 1,677 private unaided schools in the city, and plans to introduce three major reforms in the fee regulation regime — rightful determination of fees, stiff penalties for non-compliance, and a fee regulation structure that also see participation of parents. On Friday, the draft bill was uploaded on the website of the Delhi government.

The proposed reforms come a few months after widespread protests by parents who alleged arbitrary and excessive fee hikes by private schools. Following these demonstrations, the Directorate of Education on April 16 launched action against several unaided schools, initiating proceedings for de-recognition and possible government takeover.On April 29, the Rekha Gupta-led Cabinet passed Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Ordinance.

“...(the bill) will be a decisive step towards making Delhi’s education system more robust and inclusive,” Gupta said on X.