Govt needs to address fees issue at once

A group of teachers will submit a draft of suggestions to the government on Monday. Representation pic

In the tussle between schools and students over the past year of the pandemic, students seem to be losing. Big time. A report in this newspaper states that those in higher education have opted to give up on their studies as the fees have become unaffordable.

The government, on the face of it, has tried to find a solution. A committee was instituted to review fee structures in colleges.

The committee was formed following massive protests over the payment of fees for services that students could never use this past year, such as gymkhana, library, canteen and laboratory, which add up to a substantial amount.

The committee duly submitted its report, yet six months later, not a single one of its recommendations has been implemented, forcing students to make the painful decision of dropping out.

Is the government indifferent to the plight of students? It would be easy to paint the authorities as villains, when the issue really is not that simple.

This is a classic Catch-22 situation. Most schools and colleges have argued that the fees go towards payments to staff, both teaching and non-teaching. If the fees are not paid in full, there is the danger of having to terminate the services of some. While, students and parents argue that their circumstances, too, have taken a beating, making it very hard to pay full fees.

It is, however, time for the government to stop delaying the inevitable and take a firm stand one way or the other. It cannot be complicit in students being forced to give up on their studies, and schools and college authorities being forced to lay off staff. A quick decision will save both students and staff.