The Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government?s ongoing drive to regulate functioning of private English-medium schools has suffered a fresh setback, with the heads of a number of schools pleading with it to exclude teachers from certain sections of this exercise.

Principals of prominent schools have objected to a government order which says that replies to the questionnaires, recently sent to over 350 Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools, will have to be cross-verified by their teachers and signed by them before being submitted to the government.

The questionnaires were sent to collect details about internal administrative matters. This was meant to ensure that the schools maintained transparency in internal administration, particularly accounts.

At a meeting of the 13-member government committee set up to examine how the functioning of ICSE and CBSE schools can be monitored, heads of such institutions, including reputed Anglo-Indian ones, expressed their displeasure over the government decision. They have refused to allow any teacher to sign the questionnaires, sources close to the committee said.

?Why should teachers be allowed to verify the information we (principals) supply? This is an insult to us,? a principal commented, while attending a meeting of the committee last week.

?Yes, some principals are reluctant to get the questionnaires cross-examined by their teachers. But, they must understand that teachers are an important component in the whole exercise,? said Ardhendu Sekhar Biswas, commissioner of state school education department, who heads the 13-member committee.

Understanding that the principals? resentment can trigger a fresh controversy, and subsequently delay the exercise even further, the government has decided to take the middle path. Sources close to the committee said on Sunday that the government will now verify information provided by the schools through its own network.

?It is up to the schools. We will ourselves cross-examine the details supplied,? said a senior government officer.

The committee is already late in submitting its report to the government, which is supposed to finalise its decision on how it can keep an eye on the ICSE and CBSE schools before the Assembly elections.

Ismail Nehal, president, Association of Teachers of Anglo-Indian Schools, said it has urged the government to stick to its earlier stand.