New Delhi [India], August 6 : Delhi Minister Pankaj Singh said that the Education bill, which was introduced in the Delhi assembly on Monday, is going to give very "good results in the long term".
Delhi Minister Pankaj Singh told ANI, "... The people of Delhi and the parents of students will be happy with this Bill. This is going to give very good results in the long term. It is an ideal bill...I don't know who the people protesting against this bill are..."
Education Minister Ashish Sood on Monday tabled the "Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees), Bill, 2025" in the Delhi Assembly, stating that the legislation seeks to end commercialisation of education and take action against those exploiting it for profit.
The proposed law aims to regulate the arbitrary fee hikes by private schools in the national capital, providing relief to lakhs of students and their families.
"Education is not a thing to be sold. This bill aims to halt the commercialisation of education. We are bringing the bill to take action against those mafias who are selling education..." Sood said while tabling the bill.
The Bill was tabled on the first day of the Monsoon session of the Eighth Legislative Assembly, which commenced on Monday and will continue until August 8. However, the session may be extended depending on the exigencies of legislative business.
In a separate statement, the Delhi Education Minister said, "Today, I have come here with a permanent solution to the problems faced by millions of parents and children in Delhi, and to a legacy issue that has been ignored for decades."
Sood stated that education is "a sacred duty -- a duty we must fulfil for the progress and prosperity of our motherland."
He emphasised that the aim of education should not be 'earning', but rather 'learning' and nation-building.
"This bill is a small effort on our part to honour Dr. Mukherjee's vision and to ensure that education does not become a burden on the people of India, but instead becomes a path leading them to a better future," he said.
Giving historical references, he discussed how the central government has resolved long-standing legacy issues over the decades, such as the Ram Mandir, Chenab Bridge, Article 370, and electrification of every village.
He stated that the Delhi government is now also "focused on resolving the capital's old and complex issues, one of the most important legacy issues being the continuously rising fees of private schools."
"This is not a recent problem, but a question that has troubled Delhi's parents for many decades," he clarified.
He mentioned the declining quality of the government education system over the past years, the significant shortage of schools, and how increasing private school fees have caused financial and mental difficulties for parents.
Taking a jab at previous governments, he said, "Earlier governments repeatedly issued only namesake orders -- but they either feared or colluded with education mafias... There were neither audits nor records; everything was run on an ad-hoc basis."
He stated that during its tenure, the (AAP) government built only 20 new schools, while approvals for other schools were granted during previous administrations.