NC leaders back private schools’ demands

Kathmandu, July 22

The main opposition party in the Federal Parliament, the Nepali Congress, has expressed serious concerns over the challenges faced by the private schools during the COVID-19 pandemic and urged the government to support them.

In an interaction on the ‘impact of COVID-19 on private schools, status of investment and way forward’ with more than 50 private schools from the Kathmandu Valley, the NC said that the government should correct its perception towards the commercial education institutions.

Investment, Infrastructure and Employment Committee of the party has organised the interaction expressing its concerns over the plight of the school operators and their investments. Joint-coordinator of the committee Umesh Shrestha said that government had exhibited indifference to the businesses with Rs. 600 billion investment and 200,000 jobs.

“Since the government has not paid attention to the survival of the employees of the sector, the private schools should plan to run the classes with the implementation of health and safety protocols,” he said.

Coordinator of the committee and lawmaker Binod Chaudhary said that the private educational institutions had contributed to the development of human capital, even greater than the community schools. “It is sad that they are not allowed to run the online classes even during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

Chaudhary stated that the private schools have developed into a service industry therefore there shouldn’t be any obstruction to their growth and development instead the community schools should be made competitive with the former.

“We demand the same treatment from the government to the education as it has pledged the hospitality sector,” he said.

The operators of the private schools blamed the government for the illiberal stance to them. “We were charging minimum tuition fees and operating online and television classes for our students but since the government barred us from charging any fee during the lockdown, we have terminated the facility,” they said.

They have stopped the online classes since July 16.

According to them, the jobs of teachers and support staff are in crisis. They asked the government to announce the date when they could open the admission.

President of Private and Boarding Schools Organisation Nepal Tika Ram Puri said that while the universities and colleges had also running online/digital classes, the government had barred the private schools for the same.

He said that the trade union in schools should be discouraged and demanded that the operators should have the right to fire the staff with appropriate compensation. “Students of private schools should also get the opportunity of government scholarships in higher education,” said Puri.

Likewise, President of Naional-Private and Boarding Schools Organisation Nepal Ritu Raj Sapkota said that the private schools were becoming unable to manage the rent of house and lent, cost of electricity and water, and salary of teachers and staff members.

“Barring us from running online classed by charging minimum tuition fee is an injustice,” he said.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 23 July 2020.