Madras: HC Gives Green Light to Private Institutes For Collecting 75% Fees for Current Academic Year

While 40% of the tutoring fee may be collected as an advance payment on or before August 31, 2020, the balance may be paid within two months from the date of re-opening of the institution, the Commission stated.

On Friday, Madras High Court allowed unaided private educational institutions in Tamil Nadu to collect 75 per cent of the school fees paid in the previous academic year for the period 2020-21 in two installments.

While 40% of the tutoring fee may be collected as an advance payment on or before August 31, the balance may be paid within two months from the date of the institution's reopening, the Commission stated.

The matter concerns a petition from All India Private Educational Institutions Association calling for a government order of April 20, 2020 restraining all private schools and colleges across the state from charging fees as established by the fee fixing committee, citing the outbreak of COVID-19.

Passing the interim order on a batch of petitions from private educational institutions, Justice Anand Venkatesh directed them not to force parents and students to pay school fees due to the prevailing pandemic situation of COVID-19.

In his order, the judge said, "This Court finds that the institutions will not be able to reopen and conduct physical classes in the near future.

The Court, therefore, finds force in the submissions made by the counsel representing the petitioners that the initial percentage of the payment of the school fees must be increased." "In consideration of the current situation and in order to find an interim solution for clearing the logjam and balancing the interests of all stakeholders, unaided private institutions shall collect 40 percent.

The advance fee shall be paid by the students on or before August 31, 2020 "he said.

In its counter affidavit filed on 9 July, the state government informed the court that it had decided to allow the institutions to collect fees in three installments during the lock-down period.

When the matter arose on Friday, the judge allowed the institutions to collect 40 per cent as initial fees and the balance 35 per cent within two months from the date of re-opening of schools and colleges and the commencement of physical classes.

Institutions were allowed to collect the arrears of fees due for the academic year 2019-2020 paid on or before September 30, 2020.

The court ordered the government-constituted Fee Fixation Committee to initiate the process of determining the fees for the respective institutions and to attempt to complete the fee in eight months from August.

It gave instructions to teaching and non-teaching staff not to insist on an increase in salary and DA until normality and further orders were restored.

The state government has been asked to consider the request made by the institutions to provide textbooks and notebooks to students either free of charge or at certain nominal rates, and this may be limited to students who are in dire straits.