Private colleges allowed to collect annual charges

May ask students to pay annual charges equal to one-month tuition fee

KARACHI:

Sindh College Education Directorate, under the caretaker government, has allowed private educational

Institutions to collect annual charges, contrary to a law approved by the past provincial assembly. Subsequently, private colleges in Karachi and other districts of Sindh, will be able to collect annual charges along with monthly tuition fees.

This has recently been revealed in the registration and renewal registration certificates issued by the College Education Directorate to private colleges.

This clause has been formally added to it.These certificates are regularly issued under the name of Form B on the letterhead of the Directorate of College Education, Government of Sindh.

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Director Private Colleges Abdul Qadir has also con- firmed that private colleges are formally allowed to collect annual charges from students. When contacted by The Express Tribune, Qadir said, “Private colleges can organize their annual activities and events with this money. However, when asked, there is no scope for this in the Act. He said. It was said that there is nothing written about annual events in the Act.

The Director of Schools was further inquired whether the fee during inflation is tantamount to putting an additional burden on the parents. On which he said that due to inflation, three meals a day is not available to the common man.

Private colleges may collect annual charges equivalent to one month’s tuition fee as per the certificate issued. The move has come at a time when every common man is severely affected by the worst inflation in the country.

It should be noted that the monthly tuition fee of various colleges established in the city ranges from Rs2,000 to Rs10,000. While the monthly fees of some private colleges are even higher.

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These institutions are now charging or intend to charge annual charges equal to their respective monthly tuition fees due to annual charges being permitted. This move has put an additional burden on parents.

This additional burden has acquired documentary status against the Acts and Rules of the Sindh Assembly. This move is also encouraging private schools that are running both schools and colleges under the same management to adopt the strategy of using the annual charges concession given to private colleges in their schools as well.

The said move has come at a time when every common man is severely affected by the worst inflation in the country. The important thing is that there is no mention of annual charges anywhere in the Act of the Sindh Assembly and the rules made on this basis.

However, it is still being included in the certificate of registration and renewal of registration.