KARACHI: Senior Minister for Education Nisar Ahmad Khuhro has said that private schools will be able to increase 10 per cent school fee only at the start of the new academic year.

He said that the private schools by increasing from 40 to 60 per cent school fee without prior approval of the director of private schools as required under the Sindh Private Educational Institutions (Regulation and Control) Ordinance, 2001 had violated the law and if they failed to reverse their decision, they could be sentenced from six months to one year in jail.

Mr Khuhro stated this while addressing a press conference at the Committee Room No 1 of the Sindh Assembly here on Thursday after chairing a meeting of the representatives of private schools management associations.

Additional chief secretary for education Fazllullah Pechuho and the director general private schools were also present.

He said that under the law, all private schools were required to strictly follow the rules, including the rule of providing free education to 10 per cent studentsintheirschools.

He said a complaint cell was being set up at the directorate of the private schools where people could file complaints against charging of increased fee by private schools so that action could be initiated against them.

The minister said that a parliamentarian committee comprising represent-atives of the political parties having representation in the Sindh Assembly, officials of the education department and representatives of private schools was being set up to review rules of the private schools registration laws and make recommendation to improve the laws and also fixed categories of schools.

Replying to a question, he said that there were 7,261 private schools in Karachi alone in which only two per cent had affiliation with the Oxford system of education.

He said that show-cause notices were being issued to all those schools who had unilaterally increased their school fee.

Oversee committee on private schools Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has constituted an `oversee committee` comprising members of parliament, notables and education experts to monitor and bring the working of the private school managements within the rules of Private School Institutions Control Act`.

He also directed the authority concerned to re-visit the existing rules of Private School Institution Control Act and remove all weaknesses or lacunae, if any, for following the rules strictly.

The chief minister issued this directive while responding to grievances over massive increase in fees by private schools raised by a PTI delegation led by MNA Dr Arif Alvi, which called on him at CM House here on Thursday.

The other members of the delegation were MPAs Khurram Sher Zaman, Hafeezuddin and Dr Seema zia. SindhMinister for Local Govt Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, special assistants to the CM Syed Waqar Mehdi and Rashid Rabbani and additional chief secretary for education Fazlullah Pechuho were also present on the occasion.

The chief minister asl
`There should be no politics on matters concerning health and education as these are the common issues of society, he said, adding that the government had passed the Private School Institutions Control Act with comprehensive rules to regulate private schools.

`Under the laws the private school managements cannot increase school fees beyond five per cent without the permission of the education department,` the chief minister said and assured the delegation that no one would be allowed to violate the law.

He also made it clear that enforcement of private school institution laws did not mean discouraging private schools but it was aimed at bringing the fee structure of these schools within reasonable limit which could be affordable to parents not only to promote education, but also to ensure the survival of the private sector in education. The chief minister also asked the PTI lawmakers to submit their proposals for implementation of the development projects in Karachi pertaining to water, communication and cleanliness fields.