Chennai: Nearly two weeks after the state information commission and a week after the school education department ordered private schools to display their fee structures on their notice boards, compliance remains patchy.A TOI visit to city schools on Tuesday and Wednesday, coinciding with chief and district education officials sharing a compliance report with the private schools director, found that several institutions had either not displayed the information or shared it only when specifically asked.For instance, at Sri Sivaswami Kalalaya Matriculation School in Mylapore, staff initially claimed the fee details were on the notice board — but the principal produced them separately only after being pressed. At Mahila Vidyalaya Matriculation School, the notice board had a list of scholarship beneficiaries. At Montfort Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Santhome, the board was cluttered with posters, even as staff insisted that the details had been posted.Among schools that had complied, uniformity was absent. P S Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Mylapore displayed a comprehensive breakdown — tuition, special fees, and miscellaneous charges — while Little Oxford Matriculation High School in T Nagar listed only tuition fees.Several schools said no official had visited them to verify compliance. District education officer (private schools) M Elangovan did not respond to TOI’s queries.Director of private schools S Suganya said notices will be issued to non-compliant schools. “Private schools are not exempt from this mandate. We will take steps to ensure compliance. The information commission will be informed of the situation by June 15,” she said.Tuition fees for private matriculation schools are fixed by the state govt-appointed fee determination committee for three academic years, with a permissible 10% annual increase. However, school heads said miscellaneous expenses — not covered by the committee’s mandate — can range from ₹1,000 to ₹20,000 per student.TN Students’ Parents Welfare Association president S Arumainathan called for broader reform. “The fee determination committee must fix miscellaneous expenses, too, not just tuition fees. Or there must be a cap on what schools can charge per student under that head,” he said.
