Education should not be affected: HC

Education should not be affected: HC

Fees Should Not Compel Parents To Stop Kids’ Education: Court

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:03.02.2021

The Gujarat high court has asserted that children’s education must not suffer due to the inability of their parents to pay fees and “education is something which should never be compromised”.

The bench of Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice J B Pardiwala disposed of the suo motu PIL the high court had initiated on the basis of a news report on a survey conducted by the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) and UNICEF, Gujarat. It reflected the hardships faced by poor parents during the lockdown period.

The bench reminded the state government “to ensure that the inability to pay fees should not compel parents to stop providing education to their children. This is the worst that can happen to any family. It is possible that help rendered by the government may not have reached a few families. This is what the survey talks about. The government should pay due attention to such cases and try to render assistance in all possible manners. Education is something which should never be compromised”.

The HC accepted the explanation submitted by the state government on how the families of students in government and aided schools were supported during the lockdown. It also said that “by accepting the report of the state government and closing this litigation, we do not want to convey that the survey carried out by the IIM-A and the UNICEF, Gujarat, was not correct”. The HC appreciated the survey. It revealed that despite a flat 25% cut in fees, parents were not aware of any such benefits and very few received foodgrain under the mid-day meal scheme. The court said the state government “seems to have put in strenuous efforts to ease the hardships of various families during the period of lockdown”. The HC recalled its observation made earlier while exhorting the government and society to join in relief efforts during the pandemic, “crisis does not build character, it reveals it”.