Many claim they are being charged by the tehsildar's office in exchange for income certificate, and by NGOs for help in filling forms
Though the Right to Education (RTE) quota was meant to help out children from underprivileged families, parents are being fleeced left and right by organizations, including NGOs, that are supposed to help them out in the admissions process free of cost.
Harried parents have claimed that they are being charged while applying for documents like income certificates, which are mandatory for RTE admission. Moreover, they have alleged that even NGOs are charging for helping them fill RTE forms.
Tehsildar's office charges Rs 100 as donation, claims parent
One parent complained that when she visited the Andheri tehsildar's office to collect her income certificate, she was asked to pay Rs 100 towards 'Sashastra Sena Dhwaj Nidhi', which the office claimed is a donation towards the armed forces. Usually, while applying for an income certificate, an individual has to pay just Rs 5 for the form.
NGO charges Rs 250, says its for 'protests, legal battles'
Meanwhile, Anudanit Shiksha Bachchao Samiti, an NGO in Andheri, is allegedly charging parents Rs 250 each to help them fill up the RTE admission form online.
An aggrieved parent who did not wish to be named, said, “I am seven months pregnant. I rushed to the help centre to fill the form and then to the verification centre in another area to get my documents cleared. I have been running around for the past two months. I had to pay the Talathi office in Santacruz Rs 1,000 to get my income certificate documents. Yet they were wrong. Then I had to pay another Rs 800 to an NGO in Andheri named Samiti to make fresh documents.”
Another parent said, “When I submitted my documents to get the income certificate, I was given a pink receipt and asked to pay Rs 100 as donation. They took it from all the parents.”
K Narayan, secretary of the Anudanit Shiksha Bachchao Samiti, defended the NGO by saying, “We charge only the parents who can afford to pay Rs 250. The amount is to be used in protests and legal battles by parents against the education department for not providing admission under this RTE quota.”
Help centres get just 4-5 parents a day
While the primary education department has opened up help centres for parents to fill up the admission forms online free of cost, most are unaware of their locations. Help centres are receiving hardly 4 to 5 parents per day coming in them to fill up applications. Avisha Kulkarni, director of the Desh Seva Samiti, another NGO, said, “The reason parents are approaching NGOs is because they are not aware about the location of help centres. Another reason is that sometimes, the scanner does not work in help centres. Parents have complained to me that in some areas, they are being approached by touts who are demanding Rs 25,000 to confirm admissions for their child. Some cyber cafes are also filling the forms online for parents for Rs 1,000.”
No one's forcing parents to pay donation: Collector
The tehsildar remained unavailable for comment. Shekhar Channe, collector of western suburbs, said, “I don't think anybody would be forced to give that donation. That donation is voluntary. Parents can choose to not pay. It is meant for the armed forces.”
A BMC official said, “Parents should go to help centres where they can get the forms filled free of cost. Why are they approaching NGOs that are charging them?”
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