Peira says it cannot determine fees in arbitrary manner.

Byline: Jamal Shahid

ISLAMABAD -- Though the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has empowered the Private Educational Institution and Regulatory Authority (Peira) to fix fee structure for private schools, it cannot determine fees for the 1,591 private schools in Islamabad in an arbitrary manner.

This was stated by Peira Chairperson Zia Batool during a meeting of Senate Implementation Committee on Friday.

'The court decision is the first of its kind to check the private schools, which used to set fees themselves,' Peira Chairperson Zia Batool said.

The committee met to consider charging of fee by private schools during holidays. The matter was raised by Senator Manzoor Ahmed Kakar in the Senate in April last year.

However, Peira cannot determine fees for the 1,591 private schools in Islamabad Capital Territory in an arbitrary manner, Zia Batool said adding: 'The court has asked Peira to check expenses and examination requirements of private education institutions, quality of teachers and infrastructure besides other aspects while deciding the fee structure.'

According to the senior official, Peira will take up to four months to collect data of every school.

'We will identify fee slabs, and schools will have to fulfill certain criteria. The private school that offers better facilities and better quality of education will fall in the higher fee slab. And we will ensure compliance by private schools,' she said.

'Islamabad High Court has empowered Peira to not only determine fees but impose fines and penalties on schools which fail to comply with the authority's decision on the fee structure,' she told the...