Saturday, 20 January 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The owners of coaching centres have expressed their concerns regarding the impact on their business following the recent implementation of guidelines by the Ministry of Education. The guidelines stipulate that coaching centres can no longer enroll students below the age of 16 years, make misleading promises, guarantee rankings or good marks while also restricting the hours of operation.
Owner of a coaching centre Bhupindra Narang averred that he runs a coaching centre where he provides students with learning opportunities in every subject while also preparing them for competitive exams. However, he is worried considering the new guidelines because students below 16 years of age are no longer permitted to enroll whereas they are the main clients of his coaching centres. He said that the government should take action against coaching centres which indulge in malpractices rather than those which are not doing so.
Another coaching centre owner Sandeep Rajuri claimed the new guidelines are unfavourable for them as they will indirectly impact the coaching centres’ monthly earnings. He suggested that instead of implementing such guidelines, the Ministry of Education should explore alternative measures to address malpractices in coaching centres. The majority of the crowd in coaching centres is below 16 years of age and the recent guidelines have created a worrisome situation for the coaching centre owners, he said.
Local resident Rohit Sethi told this correspondent that the decision of the Ministry of Education is partially correct in order to curb malpractices such as high fees and excessive burden on students imposed by coaching centres. The athorities concerned should take necessary actions to ensure that the coaching centres comply with the guidelines. It would be better if the government makes it mandatory for coaching centres to register on a designated portal that is monitored by the authorities, he added.
It will be recalled that recently the chairperson of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Geeta Khanna recently highlighted the issues related to child protection and rights in coaching institutes. She had stated that some of the coaching institutes neglect their legal responsibilities. In order to prevent any harm to children, the commission had urged relevant departments to establish appropriate regulations and laws governing the functioning of coaching institutes.
