Private schools in Chandigarh 'endorse' uniform sellers too

Naina Mishra

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Chandigarh, April 5

It is not just booksellers’ names that are recommended by private schools, parents have also been told to purchase the uniform from select vendors through circulars, slips, messages and orally.

Although private schools do make a mention that the parents are free to purchase books and uniform from the vendor of their choice, parents claim that these items are not available anywhere else in the city.

School can’t recommend vendor: Edu Secy

Instructions have already been issued that the school authorities should not recommend any particular shop for the purchase of books, uniform, stationery and other items. Action will be initiated against the schools not complying with the directions. SS Gill, Education Secretary, UT

Corroborating this, a circular (a copy of which is with Chandigarh Tribune) of a Sector 27-based school shared by a city parent mentioned that keeping in view the new session, the parents can consider purchasing uniforms from “Maharaja Uniwear” at Sector 22. However, the circular also says that parents can consider purchasing the uniform from anywhere else. Similarly, the school specifies that the books are easily available at “Manchanda Books and Stationery Store” in Sector 19.

“There is a same problem with the school uniform as well. The uniform for my child was available only at a shop in Sector 17. The school provided handwritten slips of the book depot and the uniform vendor. There was a long queue at the shop and I paid Rs1,400 for two sets of shirt and shorts of a three-year-old boy,” said Mohit, a parent.

Amitoj Bhatia, a parent whose child studies at a school in Sector 44, said, “A circular had come from the school that books are to be purchased from Popular Book Store and the uniform from Wool ‘O’ Wool Uniforms.”

District Education Officer Prabhjot Kaur said, “The issue came to us very late and the parents had already purchased book sets by then. We were checking the websites of each school to know whether they had explicitly mentioned the names of vendors for books and uniforms, but couldn’t find anything for the record. We are trying to work out a method so that parents are not harassed in future.”

UT holds talks with book, uniform vendors

The Chandigarh Administration is planning to rigorously probe the mechanism opted by the private schools and booksellers for the supply of books and uniforms to parents. The Administration held a meeting with the book sellers and uniform sellers on Tuesday. The issues relating to non-issuance of proper bills under the provisions of the GST law and proper pricing of school books were discussed. The Deputy Commissioner-cum-Excise & Taxation Commissioner has instructed the excise and taxation officers that no laxity in issuance of bills to the customers be shown and the maximum penalty would be levied on the violators.