Indian Exp: New Delhi: Saturday, June 18, 2016.
Nearly a year
after announcing 25 per cent reservation for economically weaker section (EWS)
category students in schools located on Delhi Development Authority (DDA) land,
the education department does not have a list of playschools or information
about where such children can get admission, reply to an RTI query has
revealed.
The “list of
playschools is not available with the department”, the Directorate of Education
has replied to the RTI query by lawyer Khagesh Jha.
Jha, a member
of the lawyers’ collective, Social Jurist, said, “It was the duty of the
government to ensure playschools on DDA land admit 25 per cent children from
the EWS category… The government must work with the DDA to ensure a list is
made immediately and the scheme is advertised.”
Hearing Jha’s
petition on the issue in November 2014, the Delhi High Court had asked the
Delhi government to ensure playschools, nurseries and crèches on government
land keep 25 per cent seats for EWS category students.
The high
court had also directed the government to issue advertisements about the
vacancies. Following the court orders, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia
had, in August last year, ordered all playschools, nurseries and crèches
allotted land by a government agency or the DDA to reserve 25 per cent of seats
for EWS students.
The
government had also said that EWS category students would not be charged
registration fee or asked to pay for prospectus. The government had asked every
school on government land to display the number of seats it has on its website
as well as on an easily accessible public notice board.
In the
absence of a list and information, parents seeking admissions for their
children in EWS category allege schools are turning them away, saying the
government still needs to put a “system” in place, and there is no enforcement.
“We approached five schools in Rohini area to admit our daughter under the EWS
category, but they said there was no system in place yet for such admissions,”
said a parent, Satpal. He tried for his daughter’s admission for six months
before giving up.
Schools said
while they did receive a government notification in August last year, a system
was yet to be established. “We are yet to receive any communication from the
government on the issue. Schools can act only when the government tells us the
process,” said S K Bhattacharya, president of Action Committee for Unaided
Private Schools.
An education
department official said, “The government order had mandated cancellation of
land deeds of schools that did not provide requisite admissions. In the absence
of a list, the government can’t take any action.”
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