The Delhi Legislative Assembly is witnessing a heated debate during the Monsoon Session due to the introduction of Delhi School Education Bill 2025. The bill
tabled by Education Minister Ashish Sood not only seeks to regulate private school fee hikes, but also vouches for a structured framework. It is a big step towards government's aim of ensuring transparency, accountability, and fairness in school fee. While the bill has gained support from certain sections, it has also sparked debate. The implementation, and potential impact on various stakeholders are being challenged.
What is the School Fee Regulation Bill?
The Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Bill, 2025 is a legislative proposal that has been introduced. The aim is to streamline and monitor the fee structure of private schools in National Capital Delhi.
Education Minister Ashish Sood shared that the objective is to set up a 'robust institutional mechanism' that will not only bring transparency but also make private schools accountable in the manner they revise and collect fees from parents.
The bill outlines the formation of a regulatory framework that includes participation from parents, teachers, and school management. It is to democratize the decision-making process regarding school fees. Other than this, the bill also imposes strict penalties for arbitrary fee hikes by schools.
What Are The Key Provisions of the Bill?
Creation of a regulatory committee involving all stakeholders- parents, teachers, and school administrators.
Mandatory participation of at least 15% of the parent body to support a complaint for it to be considered valid.
Establishment of a complaint redressal mechanism through which parents can raise concerns about unreasonable fee hikes.
Strict penalties for violations
- Fines ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh for a first-time offence.
- Repeat violations could result in fines from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.
- If a school fails to refund any overcharged amount within a stipulated timeframe, the penalty doubles after 20 days, triples after 40 days, and continues to escalate every 20 days thereafter.
- It does not end here as continued violations could lead to 'loss of rights' for school officials to make fee changes and even ban them from holding official positions within the school management.
