Jammu: Workers of Dogra Front and Shiv Sena staged a protest rally in Jammu against the alleged sharp hike in school book prices, claiming that parents are being forced to purchase books from selected vendors at inflated rates.
The protest was led by president Ashok Gupta, who alleged that certain schools and book sellers have created a nexus, compelling parents to buy books, uniforms and stationery from designated shops at exorbitant prices.
To highlight the issue, a team headed by Ashok Gupta purchased a set of original NCERT books for Class 9 at Rs 1,200 from a local seller. However, similar sets were reportedly being sold for around Rs 6,000 in areas like Gandhi Nagar and Nai Basti, indicating a markup of nearly 500 percent.
The protesters alleged that students are also being compelled to purchase uniforms and stationery from specific vendors. They claimed that uniforms costing around Rs 400 in the open market are being sold for nearly Rs 4,000 through designated sellers, along with additional charges for school logos.
Raising concerns over rising education costs, the protesters pointed out that despite the existence of the Fee Fixation Committee to regulate private school fees, guidelines are allegedly not being followed. They also claimed that some private schools are charging up to Rs 9,000 as annual fees for promotion from Class 1 to Class 2.
Ashok Gupta further said that such practices are impacting economically weaker sections (EWS), as families are unable to afford expensive books and related expenses, forcing some students to drop out of private schools.
He urged Education Minister Sakina Itoo to take strict action against erring schools and book sellers, warning of intensified protests if the issue is not addressed.
Among those present during the protest were Abhishek, Bantu, Rahul, Vishal, Raju, Ganesh, Rampal, Vinod, Sangeet, Monu, Raji, Basantu, Raja, Prem, Dwassi and others.
