Tree House centre shuts down again

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It may be recalled that in December last year, rumours of shutdown of several centres of the playgroup had created panic among the parents. At the same time, a few parents in Mumbai had also lodged a police complaint against the playschool chain for shutting down without notice. But, after several weeks of uncertainty, the pre-school chain either opened its centres in some locations or shifted the students to the nearest schools run by the educational group. However, at the FC Road branch, in merely two weeks of re-opening, trouble started brewing again.

Parents said they were given the option of sending their children to either Aundh, Bhawani Peth or Paud Road branches. They were also asked to take away their books. On Monday, parents said, a tempo was sent to the FC Road centre to move out the school furniture.

Another parent Binita Mehta, who was present at the meeting, said they even requested Maghnani to consider taking another nearby location on rent for a couple of months until the academic year ends. “He (Maghnani) said it is not possible as the rent was too high and the Tree House group was not taking any responsibility for it. So we were given the option of shifting to other centres nearby. They also promised to bear the cost of transport by picking and dropping our children from and to the FC Road branch as only few months are left before the session completes,” she said.

However, parents complained that the entire process was unfair for them. “First of all, the management has not come forward till today. There is complete lack of responsibility. At the time of taking admissions, we were not informed that we will have to send our children to other parts of the city in the middle of the academic year. We are talking about pre-schoolers here, children aged between 3 and 6 years. What about their safety during transport? Why should parents send their children to other centres, when one of most important factors we consider during admissions is the travelling distance from home?” asked a parent.

Meanwhile, on Monday, six parents sent their children to the Aundh centre by school van. But many are still protesting the move. Ruta Agarwal, whose son studies in junior KG, said she would send him to Bhawani Peth. “We have all scattered now and parents are sending their wards to different centres. I chose Bhawani Peth as it is nearest to my house and is more spacious and clean than others,” she said.