KATHMANDU: Private schools, which have been in the eye of the storm of late following a decision to hike tuition fees, may have to answer a few tougher questions, as concerns are being raised whether they have been following the mandatory provision of providing scholarship to 10 per cent of students.

The Education Regulation 2006 states that private schools must award scholarship to 10 per cent of students. The deserving candidates should be women or physically challenged or those who come from poor family backgrounds or who belong to Dalit and indigenous communities. The regulation also states that private schools should provide 100 per cent and 50 per cent scholarship to these students if they stand first and second in the class.

But are scholarships being distributed in a transparent way?

District Education Offices in the Kathmandu Valley have long been saying that they do not receive ‘enough number of applications for scholarship’. Take Lalitpur for an example. There are 266 private schools in Lalitpur, but names of only 250 students were recommended for scholarship last year — less than one student for each school.

The Institutional School Criteria and Operation Directives-2012 states that of the 10 per cent of students of private schools, who should be given scholarship, 3.4 per cent should be recommended by district education offices.

One of the demands of student unions, who were demanding withdrawal of the decision to hike tuition fee, was transparency in scholarship distribution in private schools. During a meeting between agitating student unions and officials from the Ministry of Education on April 20, an agreement was reached that private schools would be monitored if they were distributing scholarship to deserving students in a transparent way.

Private and Boarding School Association Nepal, however, claim that private schools have been providing scholarship to ‘more than 10 per cent students in a transparent way’. Lachhe Bahadur KC, president, PABSON, who is also founder/principal of Suryodaya Higher Secondary School, said that scholarship distribution process ‘is transparent as the awardees are selected by the school management committee’. KC, however, said if some schools have failed to abide by the existing regulation and provided scholarship to ‘near and dear ones’, these schools should be monitored and penalised.

Despite claims by private schools, issues have been raised that the scholarship was not reaching the targeted group. District education offices’ claim that they are not receiving applications in adequate numbers shows there are some discrepancies.

“We have 198 institutional schools in the district, but we have received very few applications in the last 10 year,” said Govinda Raj Sedai, information officer, Bhaktapur District Education Office “Lack of access to information could also be one of the reasons behind it,” he added, but stopped short of explaining why information was not being disseminated.

Khagendra Subedi, assistant District Education Officer, Lalitpur, also pointed that lack of information could be the reason for not many students applying for scholarship. “Many people from disadvantaged groups may not have access to information so they may not be knowing about scholarships provided by institutional schools. As a result, DEOs get very few applications,” he said.

Dwarika Pokharel, assistant DEO, Kathmandu, said that his office has issued a notice, for the first time ever, calling for applications for scholarship this year. “On the first day, we received more than 200 applications,” he said adding, “Last year we recommended scholarship for around 1,500 applicants. The number of applicants is likely to exceed 5,000 this year,” he said.

“Scholarship is meant for the target group, but most of the receivers are those from well-off backgrounds. Those who come to school in cars are applying for scholarships,” Pokharel conceded. “Though it is our duty to check such malpractices, we are compelled to recommend them for scholarship as the number of applicants is usually less than quota.”