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Hindustan Times
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Punjab issues SOP for EWS admissions in private schools under RTE Act
Amid complaints of admissions being denied in the absence of clear guidelines, the Punjab government on Thursday finally issued the standard operating procedure for admitting children from weaker sections and disadvantaged groups to private unaided schools under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009. According to these guidelines, all private schools, except minority schools, shall admit children belonging to EWS and disadvantaged groups to the extent of at least 25% of the total seats as mandated by the RTE Act. The guidelines issued by the school education department to 'streamline the admission process' under Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act have laid down the applicability criteria for schools, eligibility conditions for students, category-wise seat reservation, neighbourhood criteria for candidate school mapping, and norms for fee reimbursement. According to these guidelines, all private unaided schools, except minority schools, shall admit children belonging to EWS and disadvantaged groups in nursery or LKG or UKG or Class I, whichever is the entry level class of the school, to the extent of at least 25% of the total seats as mandated by the RTE Act. Children belonging to weaker sections (family income below ₹8 lakh per annum), Scheduled Caste (no income limit), and backward class or other backward class (non-creamy layer), war widows' children, and destitute parents' children will be eligible for these seats. The government has sub-classified the 25% seats, reserving 12.5% for EWS category children, 5% for SC children, 5% for BC/OBC children, and 1.25% each for war widows' children and destitute parents' children. The order stated that 25% of seats would be calculated based on the total admissions in the entry-level class during the previous academic year. For newly registered schools, 25% seats would be calculated on the basis of the approved class strength. HC ordered implementation in Feb The SOP has come almost six months after the Punjab and Haryana high court ordered all private unaided schools in Punjab to reserve 25% of their Class 1 seats for children from such backgrounds. The high court, in its February 19 order, also directed the state government to ensure strict enforcement of the ruling in the 2025-26 session. However, there were repeated complaints that private unaided schools were refusing or delaying admissions to children, citing the absence of any guidelines on eligibility criteria, selection and admission procedures, and free reimbursement. Social activists waging legal battle Social activist and former IAS officer Jagmohan Singh Raju, on whose PIL the high court passed the February 19 order, filed a contempt petition last month alleging violation of the court's directions whereby the court ordered the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) provisions by private schools in the state. On August 11, the high court sought a comprehensive affidavit from the school education department. 'These guidelines are just the first step. These should have come much earlier. The real work starts now, as a lot still needs to be done. The government needs to ensure private schools notify the seats as per the provisions and give wide publicity to create awareness among the eligible beneficiaries,' said Raju, who has filed PILs and nearly 100 RTI applications on this issue. Another social activist, Onkar Nath, a former additional deputy comptroller and auditor general, welcomed the guidelines. 'We just received the government order and need to study the SOP thoroughly before offering any comments,' he said. School mapping, fee reimbursement According to the guidelines, children residing within a one-kilometre radius of the school will receive first priority for draw/admissions, and children residing within a radius of 3 km of the school will get second preference. Thereafter, in the case of unfilled vacancies, the applicants residing beyond 3km but within a 6km radius will be considered. The school transportation cost will be borne by the parents or guardians, wherever applicable. 'The school shall receive fee reimbursement for the expenditure incurred by the school to the extent of per-child expenditure as determined by the Government of Punjab, or the actual school fee, whichever is less. Detailed guidelines in this regard shall be issued later,' it said. Punjab was among the four states that did not reserve seats in private schools under the RTE Act, 2009. In 2011, the then-Punjab government framed the Punjab RTE Rules by making a provision that children from the economically weaker and disadvantaged categories must first seek admission in government schools. They can approach unaided schools for admission only after getting a no-objection certificate from government schools on the grounds of non-availability of seats or other reasons, it said. In its February 2025 order, the high court declared Rule 7(4) of the Punjab RTE Rules, 2011, as contrary to Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act, 2009. 'It is settled by the principles of interpretation of statute that in case of conflict between statutory rules and the Act, the Act prevails,' the court ruled. Following the court ruling, the state cabinet also decided to remove Rule 7(4) of the Punjab RTE Rules, 2011.
Hindustan Times
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Sans govt SOP, pvt schools deny admissions under RTE
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.
