SHAHID ALI KHANRIYADH: Manzar Jamal Siddiqui, Principal of the International Indian School Riyadh (IISR), Saturday gave a bleak scenario citing financial constraints that forced the school to run in a SR3 million deficit for the 2010-11 academic year. The principal was talking to Saudi Gazette after some parents stormed the school with complaints of tuition fee hike and other issues related with the education of their wards. Siddiqui said the Higher Board (the body which manages all Indian embassy schools in the Kingdom) decided to raise the monthly tuition fee after the landlord doubled the rent from SR2.2 million in 2009-10 to SR5 million in 2010-11. He said as per the instruction from the Ministry of Education, the school has to maintain SR1 million as a liability for operation cost, SR9 million as end-of-service benefit to staff and a two-year property rent that comes to around SR8 million for the current academic year. “The school is in serious financial crisis. The parents should understand that if corrective measures are not taken in time the institution will be forced to close within a week's notice from the authorities,” said Siddiqui. The IISR has announced a monthly tuition fee hike between SR20 and SR50 per child depending on the class he/she is enrolled. The increased tuition fee has irked many parents, even though the school has offered a fee concession from third child onwards revoking earlier offers of free education to fifth child in a family of five. However, parents in lower-income bracket expressed their incapacity to pay the increased tuition fee. Some frustrated parents Saturday entered into heated argument with the principal demanding him to revert to the old fee structure. Siddiqui said the increased tuition fee will hardly affect 150 from a total of 6,000 parents. The school has been offering free education to those students whose parents failed to pay the monthly tuition fee by organizing fund-raisers such as annual food and fun fair, and sponsorships offered by a number of social organizations. The teachers have set up a student welfare fund by contributing SR5 every month and the amount is also used to sponsor the education of financially backward students, he said. Siddiqui said IISR is looking for an alternative arrangement by finding building for girl's section from the next academic year. “We are already negotiating with the owner of a building in Malaz District, and if things go as per our requirement the girl's section will be shifted to the new premises after the summer vacation,” he said.
