After Protests, Delhi Clears Ordinance to Regulate Private School Fees

After an uproar and protests over arbitrary fee hikes by private schools, the Delhi government has approved a key ordinance to regulate this area and bring in greater transparency. 

The cabinet cleared the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Ordinance, 2025 during its meeting on Tuesday. Officials said the ordinance lays out a structured framework for overseeing how private schools fix their fees and addresses long-standing complaints from parents about arbitrary hikes and lack of clarity in fee structures.

The ordinance proposes the formation of school-level fee regulation committees, district-level appellate bodies, and a state-level revision committee to manage disputes and appeals - a first-of-its-kind three-tier mechanism in Delhi.

The BJP-led government had initially planned to introduce this reform in the second part of the Delhi Assembly's budget session, which was supposed to be held on May 13-14 and was deferred. 

After today's cabinet approval, the ordinance will be sent to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. Once approved, it will come into effect immediately and remain in force until a bill is passed in the Assembly.

The ordinance prohibits schools from penalising students for non-payment of fees, including removing them from rolls, withholding exam results, or publicly humiliating them.

Officials said the move is expected to benefit students and parents across 1,677 private schools in Delhi, ensuring that educational institutions operate within a framework of fairness, inclusion, and transparency.

Parent groups have pointed out that while some students have been removed from school rolls, others have not been allowed access to classes or removed from school communication channels due to unresolved fee issues. In certain cases, results were also withheld, leading to emotional distress.