Sharifa Begum Shiuli:
Burirhat High School in Ward No. 6 of Rangpur Metropolitan City has been accused of collecting additional money beyond the government-determined fee for filling out the 2026 Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination form. The allegation is directed at the school’s headmaster, Abdul Mannan Mandal. On-site inspection revealed that although the government-determined fee for filling out the SSC examination form in the current academic year was Tk 2,435 for the science branch and Tk 2,315 for the humanities branch, Tk 3,300 to 3,400 per person was collected from students. It has also been alleged that admission fees and monthly salaries for classes 6 to 10 were charged in excess of the government-determined rate. A clear discrepancy was found in the receipts of the money paid by the students between the government-determined fee and the amount collected, which has come to the fore as evidence in support of the allegation. When asked about this, the school’s headmaster Abdul Mannan Mondal claimed that the money was taken as per the government-determined fee. However, when the issue of collecting additional money on the receipt was presented, he said that the additional money was spent on the school’s development work and it was taken under the policy. However, the National Education Policy and Secondary Education Regulations do not mention the possibility of collecting any money in addition to the government-determined SSC exam form filling fee. Meanwhile, the school’s managing committee president Sayemuzzaman Milan also teaches at Anandalok Vidyapeeth High School. Despite repeated attempts to contact President Sayemuzzaman Milan, he refused to give an interview. According to local sources, he is a member of Ward No. 6 BNP of Rangpur Metropolitan City. There are allegations that instead of overseeing the overall supervision of the educational institution, he is spending more time on political and election activities. District Education Officer Enayet Hossain said in this regard that the matter has not yet come to his attention. However, collecting additional money on the government-determined fee is against the education policy and is a punishable offense. If a written complaint is received, necessary action will be taken through a proper investigation. He further said that whether an MPO-affiliated teacher can be the president or member of the managing committee of another MPO-affiliated educational institution or not will be verified in the light of the education regulations. If it is proven to be against the policy, legal action will be taken against the concerned. It is worth noting that the secondary and higher secondary education regulations clearly state that an MPO-affiliated teacher is not the president of the managing committee of another MPO-affiliated educational institution, nor is there any opportunity to be included as a member.
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