Rising RTE admissions amid stagnant reimbursement in U.P.
Although seat allotments for economically weaker section (EWS) children in Uttar Pradesh under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, have increased from 54 in 2013 to over 1.85 lakh this year, the state government has not revised reimbursement amount payable to private school per child ever since the Act was adopted in the state in 2013.
The reimbursement amount in U.P. continues to be ₹5400 annually for the past 12 years or ₹450 pr month per child with an additional ₹5,000 provided to RTE students for purchase of books and uniform.
In contrast, Delhi reimburses ₹26,800 annually per child while Gujarat reimburses ₹20,000. Tamil Nadu pays between ₹12,076 and ₹15,711, Uttarakhand pays ₹18,311, Andhra Pradesh reimburses between ₹5100 and ₹8,000 (rates vary based on locations like rural or urban area).
Besides, Maharashtra reimburses ₹17,760 yearly, Rajasthan pays ₹14,141, Karnataka ₹11,848, Odisha ₹9184 and Chhattisgarh ₹7,650.
'Govt has no plans to revise reimbursement amount'
Additional chief secretary, basic and secondary education, U.P., Deepak Kumar said, 'Hike or revision in reimbursement to private schools under RTE is nowhere on the agenda of the state government as of now. We have improved the infrastructure in government institutions and we encourage EWS students to seek admission in government institutions.'
Govt must revise reimbursement amount: Expert
There is a growing demand that the U.P. government must revise reimbursement to private schools. Former CBSE chairman Ashok Ganguly said, 'Yes, this needs immediate revision. U.P. has one of the lowest reimbursement amounts in the country. That could be one of the reasons why the private schools are reluctant to take admission under this category.' 'This is more so significant because the NEP now talks of universalisation of secondary education,' Ganguly added.
Pvt school assn for substantial revision
Anil Agarwal, president, Unaided Private Schools' Association, U.P., said, 'In U.P., reimbursement amount for RTE is only 450 per month and it is not as per the RTE Act that mandates that the government should pay at par with its expenses incurred for a child in government schools.'
'This amount should be around ₹ 3500 per month because according to the RTE Act, the amount spent per student in a government school or the fee of the private school, whichever is less, will be paid to the private schools as reimbursement and government can check the expenditure incurred in government schools, but no one listens,' Agarwal claimed.
How districts have performed
Of the total 1.85 lakh seat allotment under the RTE Act, 1.06 lakh children were enrolled in private schools across Uttar Pradesh this year. So far, nearly 80,000 economically weaker section students have not got admission in private schools despite completing all formalities and prescribed rules laid by the government.
Even in districts like Lucknow, Varanasi, Kanpur Nagar, Agra and Gorakhpur, barely 60% admission were done under RTE and in many cases it is far below 50%. Director general, school education, U.P., Kanchan Verma said, 'We will try to push for further enrolment.' Another education department official said, 'It's heartening to see such strong momentum in RTE admissions this year.'
'With close to 60% confirmed admissions already by early May, I am confident that 100% enrolment can be achieved by July. Starting the application process early — from December itself — was a critical step that allowed the system to move faster and more efficiently this year,' she added.
'Ballia, Bulandshahr, Saharanpur and Shamli have done quite well this year. The state capacity for admissions is almost thrice and with this momentum, I am sure it's a matter of few years. The progress we are witnessing today is the result of consistent groundwork — mobilising parents, strengthening government processes, and nurturing a strong culture of accountability for children's right to education,' said Samina Bano, the founder of RightWalk Foundation that is actively involved in pushing admission of EWS kids under the RTE. 'We remain fully committed to seeing every eligible child in school this year,' she added.
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