Education’s rising price tag: Parents take to the streets as school fees soar

What should be a time of excitement for students returning to classrooms has instead become a season of financial anxiety for families across India. 

With private schools implementing steep fee increases, parents are organising protests in multiple cities, demanding relief from what many call an unsustainable financial burden.

According to a report by Business Standard, a nationwide survey conducted by LocalCircles reveals that 81 per cent of parents with children in private schools have experienced fee hikes exceeding 10 per cent this academic year, with many schools raising costs by as much as 50 per cent.

The crisis has sparked demonstrations in Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, where parents are struggling to keep pace with rapidly escalating education expenses.

In the national capital, parents have been staging protests outside Delhi Public School (DPS) Dwarka and the Directorate of Education offices. They report that annual fees have climbed to Rs 1.4 lakh after consecutive yearly increases ranging from 8 to 20 per cent since 2020.

The situation worsened following a Delhi High Court interim order that limited the education department's oversight, allowing schools to increase fees with minimal restrictions as long as they submitted documentation under Section 17(3) of the Delhi School Education Act.

Karnataka authorities have responded by mandating greater transparency, requiring schools to publicly display fee structures and establish proper grievance mechanisms. However, many parents feel these measures fall short of addressing the core issue.

The LocalCircles survey, which gathered responses from over 18,000 parents across 301 districts, reveals that 44 per cent of families have seen fee increases of 50-80 per cent or more over the past three years. For the current academic year, 22 per cent reported hikes exceeding 30 per cent, while 28 per cent faced increases of 20-30 per cent.

These increases affect families across India, with respondents coming from Tier I cities (45 per cent), Tier II cities (28 per cent), and smaller districts (27 per cent).

As financial pressures mount, some parents are taking loans or cutting back on essential expenses. Parent associations and education activists are now calling for stronger government intervention, including caps on annual increases and mandatory financial audits of schools to ensure greater transparency and accountability.