Vadodara: Gujarat’s self-financed school managements have announced a statewide non-cooperation movement over a range of long-pending demands, including the fee approval process, delayed Right to Education (RTE) reimbursements and provisions concerning staff appointments and removals under the recently introduced amendment bill.As part of the agitation, the Gujarat Self-Financed School Management Federation has directed private affiliated schools across the state not to submit fee-hike proposals to the fee regulatory committee (FRC) for the 2026-27 academic year.The federation has been pressing for simplification of the FRC fee approval process, timely reimbursement under the RTE Act and greater autonomy for self-financed schools in matters related to staff appointments.The decision follows a statewide protest programme launched earlier by the federation, during which private school managements wore black bands and submitted memorandums to district authorities.In Vadodara, the Vadodara Unaided Private School Association (Vupsa) had submitted a memorandum to the district collector and district education officer on Sep 21, raising the same concerns.On the fee regulation issue, the federation has sought exemption from the detailed FRC approval process for schools seeking a fee increase of up to 10%. It has proposed that such schools be permitted to submit a proposal or affidavit for direct approval, arguing that this would reduce procedural delays and administrative burden.The federation has also demanded the timely disbursement of the Rs 10,000-per-student RTE reimbursement. School managements have pointed to delays in payments despite court directions and govt guidelines, saying that the prolonged wait places an additional financial burden on institutions.The federation has further opposed provisions concerning the appointment and removal of employees under the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (Amendment) Bill, 2026.It has argued that self-financed schools do not receive govt grants or financial assistance and should therefore have greater autonomy in managing their staff and administrative affairs.Another key demand is the creation of a common govt portal carrying all circulars, notifications and directives applicable to schools. The federation said such a system would streamline compliance and eliminate the need for school managements to repeatedly approach different govt authorities for information.The federation said the non-cooperation movement was being initiated because the issues remained unresolved despite repeated representations and protests. At the same time, it clarified that the agitation would not disrupt academic activities of students.
