New Delhi, 13 December 2021 – The government of Haryana has introduced an upper limit on school fee hikes in the state. This upper limit will be applicable to all private schools of the state and will ensure that fees are not increased over a certain limit.
As per the new mandate, private schools in Haryana can now increase their fees not exceeding more than 5% over the consumer price index (CPI). This means, if the CPI is 5%, then schools can only increase their fees by a maximum of 10%, i.e., 5% CPI + 5% of previous year’s fee).
According to the government of Haryana, “A recognized school may increase the fee chargeable … for its existing students by itself every year, equivalent to average percentage per capita increase of monthly salary of the teaching staff of the previous year, but the fee increase shall not exceed the latest available yearly percentage increase in consumer price index plus five per cent.”
What is the Reason for the Cap on Haryana School Fee Hike?
This decision from the government came after several parent’s associations had appealed to the state government regarding the continuous fee hikes in private schools. These associations requested the Haryana government to help, as parents were struggling to meet the increasing fee hikes levied by private schools in the state.
The government took heed and introduced the latest mandate, prohibiting all schools from increasing their fees more than 5% plus the CPI. This means private schools will no longer be able to hike their fees more than the prescribed limit.
What is the Prescribed Formula for Haryana School Fee Hike?
As per the prescribed formula, all schools can increase their fee only up to 5% more than the current CPI. Simply stated, if the current increase in the consumer price index (CPI) is 4%, then schools can not increase their fee more than 9% (4% CPI + 5% maximum fee hike limit).
This gives the following formula for increasing the fees:
Fee Hike = (Current CPI) + (0% to 5% of Previous Year’s Fee)
What is the Consumer Price Index?
The consumer price index, or CPI, is used to calculate retail inflation in an economy by tracking the changes in prices of most commonly used goods and services. It measures changes – over time – in the general level of prices of goods & services that a country’s population acquires for consumption. CPI is majorly used to calculate the cost of living of the people of a country and the changes in the purchasing power of the currency of that nation.
