KARACHI: The private schools in Sindh have once again been asked by the government to provide relief to parents in payment of tuition fee of their children and pay regular salaries to their teaching and non-teaching staff amidst the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

The Directorate of Inspection/Registration of Private Institutions, Sindh School Education and Literacy Department on Thursday issued a third letter to remind and explain the necessary standard operating procedures (SOPs) for privately managed schools in Sindh during the coronavirus pandemic.

DG private institutions of Sindh Dr Mansoob Siddiqi has written in the letter that they have been receiving complaints from parents of students about non-deduction of the 20 per cent concession in school fees for the months of April and May and also of non-payment of salaries from school staff.

He said that the higher authorities had taken serious notice of non-compliance with the directives.

“Therefore, due to lockdown in the current pandemic, and in order to streamline the payment of fees by parents and salaries to the staff of private schools, it is once again directed that full salaries should be paid to the teaching and non-teaching staff of the private education institutes regularly,” the letter read.

“If any school has collected full fee for the months of April and May, the concession of 20 per cent, which is supposed to be granted in the aforesaid period, be refunded or adjusted in the fees of the coming months with the consent of the parents,” it added.

The parents are also advised that in order to avail 20pc concession in tuition fee for the months of April and May, they must pay fees during the same months so that salaries could be paid to the staff of the school in time.

“In case of non-compliance, stern action will be initiated against the schools as per the ‘Sindh Private Education Institutions (Regulation and control) Ordinance-2001’, ‘Amendment Act-2003 and Rule-2005’,” it concluded.

Earlier, a meeting was called by at least four heads of different private school associations of Sindh, including Syed Tariq Shah, Sharaf uz Zaman, Haider Ali and Shahzad Akhtar with Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani regarding the issue.

Secretary of education Arif Shah and Dr Mansoob Siddiqi were also present in the meeting.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2020