According to a senior PSRA official, the private schools, mostly located in Peshawar, have denied the implementation of the new fee structure.
A meeting chaired by PSRA Managing Director Syed Zaffar Ali Shah and attended by other senior members of the PSRA concluded that it was necessary to request the State Bank of Pakistan to freeze those accounts.
The letter sent to the State Bank of Pakistan by the PSRA explained that the schools have persistently refused to implement the PSRA Regulations 2018 in light of the PHC judgement on 8 November, 2017.
“During the contempt hearing, the Peshawar Higher Court had directed to seal/freeze the bank accounts of the private schools, which are reluctant to act upon the directions of the court and KP-PSRA Regulations, 2018,” read the letter.
The PSRA had directed all private schools on April 10, 2018 not to charge more than half the tuition free from a second or third child of the same parents and not to charge fees during vacations. This directive was in accordance with the PHC’s judgement.
While acknowledging the school’s expenditures, the PSRA directive allowed the schools to charge not more than 50 percent of tuition fee in addition to the annual charges. In addition, only a three per cent hike in annual fee was allowed.
PSRA MD Syed Zaffer Ali Shah said that the organisation received hundreds of complaints from parents over the issue.
“We approach each school for the implementation of the fee concession whenever parents submit complaints with us,” he said.
He further said that schools pressure parents not to share with others that they have been given a concession after PSRA interference.
The PSRA had ordered the schools to withdraw the hike in fees from November 2017 and that those who failed to follow the directive would have their bank accounts frozen.
In addition, Syed Zaffer said that summer vacations are set to begin at the end of May so the PSRA is making full efforts to ensure schools do not take full fee.
Bloomfield Hall School Peshawar, Beaconhouse School System, the Racines School System, Forward Model School System, Roots Millennium School System, the City School System, the Smart School System, Peshawar Model School System, Qadim Luminaire school, Allied School System, ILM School System, Iqra Rauzatul Atfal School System, Warsak Model School, Quaid-i-Azam Public School System, St. Francis School, Frontier Children Academy, Pak-Turk International School and College, Sir Syed Public School and the Educator School System are the schools that have been mentioned in the letter sent to the State Bank of Pakistan.
