Noida School Fee Hike: Parents launch unique 'Boot Polish' protest against arbitrary school fee hike

Noida School Fee Hike Protest: With inflation and price rise in fuel and other commodities impacting the middle class, several parents from Greater Noida (West) have raised their voices against the arbitrary rise in the School Fees. As per media reports, several private schools based in the upcoming neighbourhood of Noida Extension or Greater Noida West have decided to hike their fees after a gap of two years since the pandemic. However, this decision has got negative reactions from parents amid rising fuel prices and inflation.

Parents Resort to ‘Boot Polish’ Protests against Fee Hike

To raise their voice against the arbitrary fee hike implemented by private schools in the area, a group of parents has decided to adopt a unique form of protest i.e., boot polish protests. As part of this, several parents have decided to sit on the roadside and start polishing boots on the roadside in a symbolic gesture to highlight inflation. The group of parents who have come up with Boot Polish protests include professional chartered accountants, managers and engineers in private firms. These parents are raising their voices against the "arbitrariness" of the schools in increasing the fee despite the Fee Regulation Act.

UP Govt Allows Schools to Hike Fees

The protests against ‘arbitrary’ school fee hike come following the UP Government’s directions to private schools, allowing them to increase their school fees for this year. The state government had permitted an increase in school fees for private schools for the first time in nearly two years since the pandemic hit the country. However, the fee hike coupled with rising fuel prices and retail inflation has hit parents very badly, who have resorted to a unique form of protest.

During the protest, parents appealed to the UP Government and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to withdraw the order that allowed schools to increase the fee. Parents have called upon CM Yogi to also ensure that private schools should make public their account of income and expenditure including the salaries being paid to teachers.

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