Sans govt SOP, pvt schools deny admissions under RTE

Hindustan Times

03-07-2025

In the absence of clear procedural guidelines from the state government, many private schools across Punjab are refusing admission to children from economically weaker sections (EWS) under the provisions of the Right to Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009. The Punjab and Haryana high court, in its order dated February 19, directed all private unaided schools in the state to reserve 25% of their Class 1 seats for children from these backgrounds. (Shutterstock)
The denial of admissions in violation of provisions of the RTE Act, which mandates reservation of 25% of seats in Class 1 for children from weaker and disadvantaged backgrounds, has been repeatedly brought to the attention of the state government by social activists and non-government organisations over the past few weeks. The Punjab and Haryana high court, in its order dated February 19, directed all private unaided schools in the state to reserve 25% of their Class 1 seats for children from these backgrounds. The state government was also directed to ensure strict enforcement of the ruling in the 2025-26 session.
The school education department, which instructed the director public instructions, elementary education, and all district education officers three months ago to inform unaided private schools about the HC's directives, had planned to issue a standard operating procedure (SOP) in April, detailing the procedure and guidelines related to the notification of reserved seats, eligibility criteria, admission process and monitoring mechanisms to ensure smooth implement of the legal provisions.
Social activists Onkar Nath and Jagmohan Singh Raju, former bureaucrats, who had moved the high court for the implementation of the RTE Act in Punjab and removal of the restrictive state rules, said that there are no procedural guidelines or SOP for reservation of 25% seats from EWS children and admissions in private schools. 'I filed applications under the Right to Information Act (RTI) for information on RTE admissions and all the district education officers have replied saying 'nil', ' he said, blaming the state authorities' apathy for the situation.
Raju said the government has neither issued guidelines nor declared the amount to be reimbursed to private unaided schools per child, which was to be notified by June 30 as per the RTE Act. 'They should be proactive and take steps required under the law to ensure RTE admissions. We will file a contempt petition in the matter soon,' said the former IAS officer, putting the number of schools that need to be reserved in Class 1 of private unaided schools for children from underprivileged sections at approximately 50,000.
Onkar Nath, a former additional deputy comptroller and auditor general, wrote to chief secretary KAP Sinha on June 14, drawing his attention to the serious and growing non-compliance by private unaided schools, despite clear judicial orders and instructions of the school education department. 'Private schools are denying admissions or deferring responsibility to DEOs, elementary. They have used near-identical justifications, implying a coordinated refusal to ensure compliance. This pattern suggests a deliberate strategy by private school associations to undermine implementation of the RTE Act and high court directions,' he wrote, naming 12 private schools in eight districts of the state. He also submitted a list of students denied admission by private schools in Mohali. 'We have been writing to different authorities at district and state levels, but no action has been taken to ensure admissions,' he added.
However, a school education department officer stated that the department had already issued instructions to district officials, who conveyed the court's directives to private schools across the state.
'The department is seized of the matter and exploring various options, including setting up a centralised portal for admission and seat allocation under the Act. This process was being used by Delhi and other states for EWS admissions,' said the officer, who did not wish to be named.
Dr Jagjit Singh Dhuri, president of the federation of private schools and associations, claimed that private schools were not against implementing the RTE provisions. 'We have conveyed our willingness to the government several times in writing, but there has to be a procedure and guidelines for its implementation. The law provides for notification of reserved seats with a radius within which children can seek admission, the system of merit, the selection process in case admission seekers are in excess of the number of reserved seats, and notification for per-child fee reimbursement by the state government,' he said.