Hyderabad: New school Meru International is slated to open in the next academic starting June 2018. The construction of the school building is progressing on course but it’s not quite complete yet. The school, however, has gone ahead and started granting admissions to prospective students. The school is located at Chandanagar. Meru International School has even put out a brochure and a fee structure for students of class I to class X for the 2018-19 academic session. The brochure says parents can make fee payment via cheque, DD, credit card, debit card or a wire transfer.
But with the school premises not ready yet, parents are sceptical about the start of the admissions process, contending that the school may have begun to do so based on the reputation of the educational group it belongs to. Some parents even wonder if a school can start admissions when it premises is still under construction, especially given that the state govt has instructed all existing schools not to start admissions till the dates for the purpose are notified.
As for Meru International, its brochure advises parents to buy uniforms, shoes, socks, identity cards, books, stationery and other items from the school itself. Also, students opting for CBSE and CAIE board education are expected to have their own laptops. This too is not going down well with parents.
A parent Ramanjeet Singh said, “This is a typical case of how educational institutes violate regulations. I have not heard a school starting admissions before even its building is ready. “A parent would sure like look at the infrastructure and facilities on the campus before getting his/her child admitted to a school.”
Another parent said unless a school has an alternative campus and some temporary facilities, it should not kick off its publicity campaign. The schools doing this can only expect to get admissions on the strength of the group’s reputation. Meru International School authorities said that they would address the parents concerns on a priority basis.
Fee structure
Prospects and registration : Rs1,000
Admission fee : Rs 25,000
Annual fee : Rs 10,000
Security deposit : Rs 10,000
Tuition fee: 36,700 (I-V); 43,400
(VI-X); 50,000(VI-X) per term
Canteen fee : Rs 10,000
Transport : Rs 6,700
(upto 10 km)
Schools violate rules flagrantly, says Parents Association
Schools ignore orders, start early admissions
Despite a circular and instructions put out by the director of school education and even an announcement made by the Deputy CM in the Assembly, schools continue to violate government orders by starting off admission process. Hyderabad School Parents’ Association (HSPA) says that there are so many instances of rule violations by schools that they are tired of bringing them to the notice of the government.
On November 6, the department of school education released a circular asking all schools not to start admissions process months ahead of the next academic year. The circular also stated that as per the Right to Education, the normal period for granting admissions in any school is between June 12 and August 31.
The education department has also said that admissions cannot be granted until the government notified the date for it, and any deviation would be viewed seriously and action initiated against school managements accordingly.
However, parents claimed that some schools in the city had already begun the admissions process. Seema Agarwal, member of the HSPA, said, “When we enquired with the commissioner of school education about the delay in submission of the report of Professor Tirupathi Rao Committee, he said he was not authorised to comment on it, saying we should instead ask Professor Tirupathi Rao himself. It seems the panel may be given a further extension.”
Arvinda Jata, another member of the HSPA, said, ‘”The admissions currently going on in some schools are an example of how schools don’t pay heed to directives and instructions from the education department. Inaction by the government is the cause of such a scenario. Regulations need to be implemented strictly.”
