Education Minister Ashish Sood has assured that the Delhi government will take action against private schools across the city that have allegedly increased their fees arbitrarily.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Sood stated that curbing the commercialization of education is a top priority for the Delhi government, and it will not tolerate any such practices.
He informed that the government has already compiled a list of schools and will conduct inspections accordingly, followed by necessary action based on the findings.
Sood criticized the previous AAP-led administration in Delhi for alleged irregularities in auditing private schools. He pointed out that the Delhi School Education Act, 1973 mandates annual audits for all 1,677 private schools in the city. However, over the past decade, only about 75 schools were audited annually.
According to Sood, the Education Department requires past audit reports to assess whether a school is making profits and operating properly. However, he alleged that no such reports or audited accounts have been available with the Directorate of Education for the last ten years.
He further revealed that, for the first time, a dedicated committee has been formed. Along with the concerned SDM, the committee will visit every private school, pose 18 specific questions, and take appropriate action based on the responses.
The Education Minister also refuted allegations against the current government regarding fee hikes, claiming that the issue originated during the previous AAP government’s tenure. He asserted that many private schools raised their fees during that time, but no action was taken against them.
Sood concluded by citing instances where private schools themselves admitted to hiking fees during the AAP government’s rule, yet faced no consequences.