Punjab passes bill on capping school fee hike at 5 per cent
The Punjab Assembly on Monday unanimously passed a bill paving the way for capping fee hikes by private schools at 5 per cent per annum.
On the concluding day of the monsoon session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains tabled the Punjab Regulation of Fee of Unaided Educational Institutions (Amendment) Bill, 2026 in the House.
According to the bill, no unaided educational institution shall enhance its fee by more than 5 per cent annually.
Winding up the discussion on the Bill, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said it will cover around 7,800 private schools in the state, directly benefiting around 32 lakh students. It will bring big relief, asserted Mann on capping fee hike at 5 per cent. Mann said the ceiling will cover not only the tuition fees but also all mandatory charges and funds collected by schools.
According to the bill, fee includes all amounts charged, including tuition fee, development fee, annual charges, activity charges, smart class or technology charges, transportation charges (where not separately contracted), laboratory and library charges, examination charges, and any other funds.
As per the bill, educational institutions will be required to refund parents in cases where cumulative fee increases have exceeded 15 per cent over the last three years.
The Punjab Government will also conduct forensic audits of private schools to identify excess collections and ensure that the additional amount is refunded to parents, with violations attracting fines of Rs 50,000 for the first offence, Rs 1 lakh for the second and cancellation of affiliation for the third.
On the bill, Mann said it marks a decisive step by the Punjab Government to curb profiteering in the education sector and ensure that private schools function in the interest of students and parents rather than commercial gain.
“Education is a noble and sacred endeavour, and it is a public good, not a commercial enterprise to be exploited for profit. Ensuring access to quality education for each student of the state is the topmost priority of the Punjab Government,” he said.
Our Government has already broken the backbone of every unholy nexus in the State, and they will not allow the education mafia to mushroom in the State, said Mann.
The State Government will not allow education to become a commercial enterprise and a district regulatory committee, headed by a Deputy Commissioner, will examine and regulate all fee hike proposals, he said.
Aiming for the previous Congress Government, Mann said that during Covid, when schools were shut and vehicles were not operating, parents were still forced to pay transport fees, making it clear that such exploitation would no longer be allowed in Punjab.
The bill was brought by amending the Punjab Regulation of Fee of Unaided Educational Institutions Act, 2016.
Participating in the discussion, Congress MLA Pargat Singh said this bill was brought in 2016, and at that time, the fee cap was 8 per cent.
“I am surprised that the CM held a press conference over this issue, claiming that the 8 per cent ceiling was dropped by the previous Government,” said Singh, challenging the treasury benches for showing any notification in this regard.
Singh targeted the state Government, saying a Government counsel in the Punjab and Haryana High Court recently informed that it will not implement the decision of retrospective excess fee recovery from schools.
We say one thing in the Vidhan Sabha and something else in the High Court, said Singh.
The House also passed three Bills about universities.
The Cloud University, Hoshiarpur Bill, 2026, the MS Digital University, Patiala Bill, 2026, and the Physicswallah Digital University, Patiala Bill, 2026, were moved by Education Minister Bains.
However, uproar erupted in the House after Independent MLA Rana Inderpartap Singh protested over being denied to speak on the university bills.
Singh, as well as Congress MLAs, trooped to the Well of the House, protesting over the denial of the independent MLA to speak on the bills.
Meanwhile, the university bills were passed as the protest continued.
Later, Congress MLAs returned, but Rana Inderpartap Singh continued to be in the Well. After some time, he walked out of the House.
