Time and again, the nation has applauded the Right to Education (RTE) Act that ensures education as a fundamental right to children. Admirable as it is, however, the RTE Act can become powerless when supporting policies are missing.

For years, parents and activists have been at loggerheads with school managements against arbitrary fee hikes, at the same time demanding that the government put in place a fee regulation bill in order to bring about parity in fee structures of various schools. There have been numerous cases of students being made to discontinue their education as their parents could not afford to pay the full fees. In some cases parents have fought cases against the school for years together, only to give up all hope of justice eventually.