Draft Bill calls for fee fixation committee in every school

Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood will introduce the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Act, 2025, in the monsoon session of the Delhi Assembly scheduled to begin tomorrow.

The Bill outlines a structured mechanism for determining the fees of 1,677 private and government-aided schools in the city. It comes in the wake of widespread protests by parents over arbitrary fee hikes at the start of the current academic session in April.

Under the proposed legislation, a ‘fee fixation committee’ will be constituted in every school, comprising parents, teachers and representatives from the administration. The committee will examine the school’s proposed fee structure, which will then be forwarded to the designated government authority for approval.

In addition, district and state-level appeal and monitoring committees will be established to promptly address complaints and irregularities. Fees will be regulated based on 18 parameters, including school leadership, infrastructure quality, academic outcomes and financial requirements. The aim is to allow only genuinely needy schools to increase fees and that too within reasonable limits.

Importantly, schools will be permitted to hike fees only once every three years and only with valid justification. The bill directly involves parents in the fee determination process, granting them the right to review the school’s expenditure rationale and budget. In case of discrepancies, they may raise objections through the committee.

Any school increasing fees without approval will face penalties ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. Repeated violations may result in cancellation of the school’s recognition.

Furthermore, schools will be prohibited from withholding a pupil’s education or transfer certificate over a fee dispute. The bill also aims to regulate ancillary charges such as those for transport, uniforms and textbooks, providing families with relief from sudden financial burdens.

Notably, the Cabinet led by Rekha Gupta had earlier cleared the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Ordinance on April 29.