Bhubaneswar: The Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE) decision to hike the examination fees has shocked the Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik .
Patnaik, in a letter to union Human Resources Development Minister(HRD) Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, on Tuesday has said that the CBSE’s decision to increase the examination fees for Scheduled Tribe (ST) & Scheduled Caste (ST & SC) students by 24% has came as a shock. Stating that the State government has established 200 English Medium Schools with CBSE affiliation in rural areas to benefit economically and socially underprivileged section of the society, he has pointed out that the CBSE’s decision would hit the poor and under privileged students of the State.
The examination fee for ST & SC students under the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has been increased from Rs 50 to Rs 1,200.
Patnaik has also said that the examination fees of Class X and Class XII students has been sharply hiked by the CBSE has caused resentment among students, parents and other stakeholders.
The general category students who were paying Rs 750 for five subjects earlier will now pay Rs 1500 as examination fees.
The chief minister has urged the union minister to prevail upon the CBSE for reconsideration of its decision regarding fee hike.
The Odisha chapter of All India Parents Association had earlier sought chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s intervention in this matter.
