Students forced to buy shoes,stationery from school

If you happen to be the parent of a school-going child,your litany of woes seems to have no end.

If you happen to be the parent of a school-going child,your litany of woes seems to have no end. Throughout the past year,the parents of several schools across the city hit the streets,protesting against the steep hikes in school fees. And this academic year has begun with parents voicing their opposition to schools forcing them to buy branded shoes and stationeries from the school itself.

The opposition to the policy seems to be vehement at the Vikhe-Patil Memorial School (VPMS) where the parents have to shell out around Rs 900 for Reebok shoes that have been made mandatory from this academic year. Starting this year,we have to buy shoes from the schools itself. They cost nearly Rs 1,000. So for parents who have two children studying in the same school,it becomes a burden, said Leena Katkar (name changed),whose son studies in Class IX at VPMS.

However,Nandini Charles,principal,VPMS justified it,saying,We got a hefty discount from Reebok for bulk orders. Also,parents had to buy two different pairs till last year. These shoes are multi-purpose washable shoes,which are a lot more convenient for both parents and students.

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Priya Venkatraman (name changed),whose daughter studies in the Delhi Public School,said,The school had this policy for quite some time now. We have to buy all study materials including pens,pencils and notebooks. We are not allowed to buy these things from outside. The students can wear watches from Class IV. Even that has to be bought from the school store.

Another parent from the same school said,We have to buy Adidas shoes from the school store for Rs 850. Everything,including the pencil boxes,has to be bought from the school store itself. I feel parents should be given the liberty of buying these things.

Ramesh Panse,a senior educationist from the city,said,What shoes a student should wear should not be a matter of concern for a school. If schools are making parents to buy particular brands from their school,it is obvious that they have tie-ups with these companies. Schools should be concerned about the quality of education being imparted and not about these other unimportant things.

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