The National Independent Schools Alliance (NISA) has urged the Haryana Government to immediately release the pending reimbursement amounts under Rule 134-A, Section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, the Chirag Scheme, and other government-sponsored education schemes, which have remained unpaid since 2015.
National president of NISA Kulbhushan Sharma, while addressing in Chandigarh on Monday, stated that private schools have been implementing various student welfare schemes of the government, including free admissions, yet despite fulfilling their responsibilities, the schools have not received reimbursement payments for several years, placing thousands of institutions under severe financial stress.
He warned that if the pending reimbursement amounts are not released by June 15, private schools and their representative organisations will be compelled to seek legal remedies and approach the courts to protect their legitimate rights. The responsibility for any such situation, he said, would rest entirely with the Haryana Government and the Education Department.
“Schools are managing salaries of teachers and staff, EPF, ESI, building maintenance, transportation, electricity, water, and other operational expenses from their limited resources”, he said.
NISA demanded that the government release all pending payments under the 134-A Scheme from 2014-15 onwards along with applicable interest.
“We ask the government to release reimbursement under the RTE Act at the rate of Rs 1,750 per student per month without further delay. Such a step would strengthen trust between private schools and the government and ensure that admissions of children belonging to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) are not adversely affected”, he said.
Sharma said that an equally concerning issue is the growing discrimination between students and teachers of government and private schools in the state.
“Recently, the Education Department recognised and rewarded students and teachers from government schools for their outstanding performance in board examinations, which is a welcome initiative. However, thousands of meritorious students and dedicated teachers from private schools, who have also achieved exceptional results at the state and national levels and brought laurels to Haryana, were completely overlooked," he said.
