Has your school hired a retired principal?

Two months ago, RTI activist Nana Kute Patil filed a petition through the RTI Act to find out whether 40 CBSE, ICSE and IB schools in South Mumbai have recruited principals who had already retired from other schools.

Patil says he has been informed that most central government and international schools hire retired school principals from either private or state government schools. He said, "I have only received a response to my RTI application from one private school in South Mumbai, which admitted to having hired a formerly retired principal. Since the rest have not replied yet, I have sent out an appeal."

According to the rules of the state, principals are to retire after 58 while the central government states retirement age as 60. The education department states that no principals can be hired in schools after their retirement.

B Mane, education inspector, South Mumbai, said, "It is against the government rules to hire retired principals for the same post at another school. If we find cases of such a situation, we can get the schools to sack the principals."

Mane says if the case of the South Mumbai school reaches the education department, they will do the needful.

SC Kedia of Mumbai's Unaided Schools Forum, said, "Private unaided schools are allowed to hire retired school principals at the post of principal. Only government schools cannot do that."

When contacted, Perin Bagli, secretary, ICSE Maharastra, refused to speak.u00a0