Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said fee hike by private schools will be capped at 5% per annum.He said a law will be introduced in the next assembly session.Addressing the media in Chandigarh, Mann said private schools will not be allowed to increase their fees by more than 5 per cent per annum.He said he received many calls from parents and students complaining that schools harassed them by threatening to withhold roll numbers or certificates until dues were paid.“The Punjab government has decided that fee hike by private schools will be capped at 5 per cent per annum. They can raise fee only by 5 per cent in a year,” Mann said.The chief minister clarified that it will apply to all kinds of fees, not just tuition.He said schools that raised fees by over 15 per cent in the past three years must refund the fee component charged above the 15 per cent increase.He informed reporters that a strict law will be brought in this regard and asserted that it will be the toughest law in the country.Mann said a fine will be imposed on schools that violate the law’s provisions, and continued violations can lead to cancellation of affiliation.
