In a decisive crackdown on financial irregularities, the Jabalpur district administration has targeted eight prominent private schools in Madhya Pradesh for allegedly implementing unauthorized fee hikes. Following an intensive investigation, these institutions have been ordered to return a staggering Rs 54 crore to parents, along with a penalty of Rs 2 lakh each for breaching regulations.
The action stems from findings under the Madhya Pradesh Private School Fee and Other Subjects Regulation Act of 2017, which uncovered that the schools had unlawfully raised fees in previous academic sessions. These increases were carried out without obtaining the necessary approvals from the district administration or the district education committee, thereby violating the stipulated guidelines.
The investigation revealed that the schools had collected inflated fees from over 74,000 students, raising concerns among parents and local authorities alike. As a result, the district administration has mandated that these institutions not only return the Rs 54 crore collected but also revert to the original fee structure that had been agreed upon earlier.
In addition to ordering the refund, the administration instructed the owners of the implicated schools to deposit a Rs 2 lakh fine into the bank account of the Directorate of Public Instruction within 30 days. Failure to comply could lead to stricter legal consequences.
This recent action has sparked a major upheaval among private school owners in the region. The scrutiny of private institutions has intensified since May, when Collector Deepak Saxena led an earlier crackdown on schools involved in arbitrary fee hikes. At that time, FIRs were filed against the principals and owners of over a dozen schools, some of whom were arrested for their involvement in an organized network of financial misconduct.
The ongoing investigation has exposed systemic financial exploitation in the region, with reports suggesting that the total amount extracted from parents over the years exceeds Rs 200 crore. As authorities continue their probe, the case has become a significant moment in the fight for transparency and fairness in the private education sector of Jabalpur.
