Parents in lurch as govt schools demand TC

Coimbatore: A former ambulance driver, who is now nearly out of work as a concrete mixer truck driver, approached the collector on Monday stating that he had to pull his two children out of a private school because of his inability to pay the fees.
However, the two government schools he is now trying to admit them are demanding a transfer certificate, which the private school refuses to give without paying the due fees.
Many factory and mill workers in rural areas are also considering moving their children to government schools from private schools, especially when online class is the new norm.
Kannan Manikandan, who used to work for 108 Ambulance in Palani, moved to Coimbatore towards the end of 2020 to find work. He managed to find work as a concrete mixer driver.
“I put my son in Class IX and daughter in Class V in St Paul’s School in KNG Pudur,” he said in his petition to the collector in the city.
“I initially paid a fee of Rs 38,000 for one term for both,” he said.
Due to the poor economic condition and the prevailing pandemic, Manikandan said he found himself often without work and unable to pay the fee for both his children for the third term of 2020-’21 academic year.
“Thus, I decided to pull them out and put them either in Pannimadai Government School or Ashokapuram Government School. But now both government schools are constantly calling us and asking for a transfer certificate at least for our son because he is going to Class X,” Manikandan said.
The driver also showed constant SMSes and notes given to his daughter and son, demanding payment of the third term fee from the private school.
For Mithun Karthik, they demanded a fee of Rs 22,970 and Rs 14,000-odd for his daughter.
“The school says I have to pay 75% or at least two terms fees to give me a transfer certificate, which I can’t afford because I had no work for the past two months,” the driver said. The district revenue officer said he would investigate it.
The chief education officer, M Ramakrishnan, said transfer certificates are compulsory in government schools for admission from Class IX nine onwards. “Till Class VIII under the RTI Act, transfer certificates are not required, but from Class IX it is required. While no government school will refuse education, it is a protocol that they get a transfer certificate,” he said. “ If the complaint is forwarded to us, we will look into it,” he added.
A growing number of people in rural areas are considering the same move.
“After my husband and brother lost their jobs, it’s with my salary that I am supporting them. Since it is an online class which my son doesn’t understand, I am considering shifting him from PUMS School to the Thondamuthur Government School,” said T Puniyavani, a domestic maid.
“I am also trying to shift my son from Pioneer Aided school to a government school,” a private mill driver said.