The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Schools to seek cut in penalty

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 13, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Schools to seek cut in penalty

Special Correspondent

Bangalore: A series of Karnataka High Court directives asking derecognised schools to fall in line seem to have made the erring school managements soften their stand considerably.

Several school managements who earlier repeatedly said they would make new admissions to English-medium classes irrespective of the Government Order or judicial directive are now hoping only for a reduction in the penalty imposed on them. They are willing to comply with the direction if the penalty is within "reasonable limits".

Unaided Private Schools Action Committee president N. Venkatachaliah said here on Tuesday that they would be taking out a rally to the Chief Minister's residence seeking his intervention to reduce the penalty so that the schools would not have to shut down.

A majority of these schools, he claimed, led a hand-to-mouth existence and could not afford the Rs. 1 lakh penalty imposed on schools that fall within the limits of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike.

Mr. Venkatachaliah said the schools, derecognised for getting permission to start Kannada-medium classes and running English-medium classes on the sly, were doing so because "it was the demand of the parents".

He said they were catering for lower-middle-class parents for whom English-medium instruction for their children provided a chance for upward mobility. These schools were providing English education "at an affordable cost" unlike "CBSE and ICSE schools, which charge thousands per month", he said.

Mr. Venkatachaliah urged the Government to introduce a uniform language policy so that Kannada was not thrust on the poor while the rich continued to get access to English schools.

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