Empty chairs at fee regulatory committee in Ahmedabad await occupants

As the state education department has terminated Chartered Accountant Bharat Patel as a member of the Fee Regulatory Committee (FRC), Ahmedabad zone, over complaints of corruption, the committee now has no active member in it.

FRCs in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, and Surat were formed under the Gujarat Self-Financed Schools (Fee Regulation) Act, 2017 by the education department to get the traction in Lok Sabha elections of 2017.

The FRC consists of a zonal chairperson and other four members including a chartered accountant (CA), civil engineer, and school representative. The chairman and other members of the committee are appointed by the government for three years.

FRC ensures that no self-financed school should collect any fee over the fee fixed by the FRC for admission of students to any standard or course offered by the school.

The committee is responsible for setting fees for all private schools in Gujarat, including those affiliated with the Gujarat Board, the CBSE, and other boards.

Ahmedabad is the biggest zone as it has the maximum number of schools as compared to other districts. This zone includes Ahmedabad city, rural, Gandhinagar, Patan, Sabarkantha, Banaskantha, Arvalli, Kutch, and Mehsana.

The position of committee judge has been vacant in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, and even Surat.

The government is processing the appointment of a chairperson-judge in all committees, however, the position still awaits an appointment.

Despite the government’s implementation of an Act intended to regulate school fees, many schools have yet to finalise their fees for the 2024-25 academic year.

Also read:

State terminates CA Bharat Patel from FRC in alleged corruption case