KATHMANDU: The umbrella organization of private and residential schools—PABSON (Private and Boarding Schools’ Organization Nepal)—has made what officials are calling an unlawful demand: that monitoring of private schools should not be conducted without prior notice.
After the Department of Commerce, Supplies, and Consumer Protection began monitoring private schools, PABSON met with the Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Supplies, Damodar Bhandari, demanding that no inspections be carried out without advance information.
On Sunday, representatives from both PABSON and NPABSON (National PABSON) met the minister and requested him to halt inspections unless prior notice is provided.
PABSON President Krishna Adhikari instructed schools not to provide any details if the department conducts inspections without notifying the organization.
“If any monitoring is carried out without informing PABSON leadership, the concerned schools should also refrain from cooperating. Activities not coordinated through our organization only serve to demoralize the schools,” a statement quoting Adhikari posted on PABSON’s official Facebook page read.
Adhikari also expressed his dissatisfaction in an interview with Khabarhub, arguing that multiple government bodies already monitor schools.
“We are under the Ministry of Education, and we are already being monitored by them. Schools pay taxes annually to the Inland Revenue Department. Then Commerce steps in, and then the Finance Ministry—how many bodies will inspect us? There has to be a limit.”
Following the meeting, PABSON claimed that Minister Bhandari instructed the department to halt its monitoring activities.
Minister Bhandari reportedly acknowledged the significant contribution of private schools to the education sector and said that any form of unnecessary and fear-inducing inspection by the department should be immediately stopped. This statement was also shared via PABSON’s Facebook page.
According to PABSON President Adhikari, the minister asked the organization to issue a statement after the discussion, which they did.
However, Jagadish Aryal, the spokesperson for the Department of Commerce, Supplies, and Consumer Protection, stated that there is no legal provision requiring advance notice for monitoring.
Speaking to Khabarhub, Aryal said that prior notification would defeat the purpose of such inspections. He added that the department had received numerous complaints regarding fees charged under various headings by private schools, which prompted the monitoring activities.
Aryal also stated he was not aware of PABSON’s meeting with the minister.
“There is no clause requiring us to inform schools in advance before inspection. Legally, inspections are not conducted with prior notice,” he said.
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