For EWS students, entry to Class 9 will mean losing Right to Education
Students who were taken in private schools at the entry level in 2011 will move to Class 9 next year and lose out on the benefits under RTE It is a very important question that legislators need to answer as to what happens to these students after Class 8. Fragmentation of education is not good for quality education.
NEW DELHI: Eight years after around 1,300 private schools in Delhi opened doors for children under economically weaker section category, the education of these students is set to come under cloud once again. The first batch of students taken at entry level in private unaided schools under RTE in 2011-12 may not be able to avail the free education provision from next year as they will enter Class 9.
The Right to Education Act 2009 stipulated that private schools must admit students from economically weaker sections (EWS) and disadvantaged groups (DG) on at least 25 per cent of total seats in entry level classes and give such students free education till Class 8. The state reimburses a fixed amount to the schools for providing education to students under EWS.
In Delhi the first batch of EWS/ DG students was admitted in entry level classes in private unaided recognised schools in the 2011-12 academic session — these students are currently in Class 8.
THE COST OF EDUCATION
A worker at a marble factory in Kirti Nagar sends his son to a private school in west Delhi’s Rohini under the EWS category. However, he is planning to move his son to a government school as he cannot afford to pay the fee from next year when his son will go to Class 9.
“I earn around Rs 8,000-10,000 and I have two sons. If he has to go to a government school, then I think it is better for him to shift while still in Class 8 otherwise it gets difficult to get admission in Class 9,” he said on condition of anonymity. Another parent, a 40-year-old cook from Guwahati, is relying on the goodwill of a private school where his daughter has been studying since nursery and is currently in Class 8
“The monthly fee must be over Rs 10,000, which I can’t afford on my monthly salary of Rs 8,000. The school usually let the kids study because they get tax exemptions for it,” he said.
But if the school asks him to start paying, he said he will write to the government and ask them to intervene. “I will ask the government what is she supposed to do now if the school won’t let her study for free,” he said.
Manish Sisodia, education minister of Delhi, said he was aware of the situation. “It is unfair to children. I had spoken to Prakash Javadekar (Union HRD minister) regarding this. I have demanded that the 25 per cent reservation be extended,” he said.
The Delhi High Court has also sought response of the Centre and the Delhi government after a PIL was filed seeking amendment to the RTE Act, 2009 to extend the EWS provision till Class 12.
However, this problem is not limited to Delhi as students in private schools in most states in the country face the same problem with no clarity on what the institutions should do after Class 8.
The problem is not unexpected as experts involved in formulating the RTE Act 2009, were aware that a couple of years later the issue will have to be dealt with. The Central Advisory Board of Education, the country’s apex education reforms body, had formed a subcommittee after implementation of the RTE Act, 2009 to look into the possibility of extending the RTE to pre-primary and secondary classes.
R Govinda, a member of the then CABE subcommittee said it was supported back in 2013 that the Act should be extended to preprimary and till Class 10. “It is a very important question that legislators need to answer as to what happens to these students after Class 8. Fragmentation of education is not good for attaining quality education,” he said.
Annie Namala, the director of the Centre for Social Equity and Inclusion, who has served as a member of the National Advisory Council for the implementation of the RTE in 2010, said, “Class 10 is at least one level of education, a proper certification. The burden is put on the children, because technically, after Class 8, schools can ask these kids to leave, if they want to,” she said.
The same was suggested in 2018 when a 29-member CABE sub-committee headed by Union minister of state for HRD Satyapal Singh met to discuss the possibility to bring pre-school and Classes 9 and 10 within the RTE Act, 2009 across the country. But later Singh said in Rajya Sabha that there was no proposal to extend the ambit of RTE.
A senior HRD official said though there is no proposal right now but the issue is under consideration of the ministry. “Ministry is aware of the issue and the matter is under consideration,” the official said on Monday.
EXTENDING RTE
Extending RTE Act is not an easy task, explained a Delhi directorate of education (DOE) official dealing with implementation of the RTE provisions. The official said any change will require an amendment in the RTE Act, 2009 by Parliament.
“This will also require a huge financial commitment on part of the Centre and the state. At present, the financial cost of reimbursing the private schools is borne by the Centre and state at a ratio of 60:40,” the official said.
When asked if there is any data on how many students are presently in Class 8 in the city and would need the assistance to continue getting education under the EWS category, the official said there is no monitoring to find the number of these students. “We only monitor admissions under EWS at entry level and ensure all seats are filled,” he said.
In Delhi, this problem is not faced by those studying in around 400 private schools built on government allotted land out of the 1,700 schools recognised by the DOE. DOE officials said such schools have to continue giving education till Class 12 to 20 per cent students under EWS. “But for schools on private land, we cannot do anything and students will have to either move to a government school or pay the fees,” a DOE official said. Delhi started centralized entry-level admissions to the 1700 schools in 2016 when 19,000 students were admitted against 24,000 seats. Next year, 26,500 students were admitted against 31,000 seats. This year there are 40,000 seats and admissions are going on.
WHAT SCHOOLS SAY
Schools like DPS Mathura Road, have been allowing students to continue studying, even after the eighth grade. However, this is out of goodwill, and not a legal obligation. “Our management is planning to take some appropriate action as there is no government order on this. We will have to start charging some fees as we have no other option. We cannot ask the students to leave,” principal Manohar Lal said.
According to the school, the scheme is getting too expensive, especially because the government allegedly doesn’t compen- sate them appropriately or on time. The government compensates each school at Rs 1,598 per child per month.
IN OTHER STATES
It is not just Delhi but states across the country face the same problem even though many states ratified the RTE Act, 2009, much later, and most students under EWS category are still in lower classes in these states, such as Maharashtra and West Bengal.
In Haryana, though initially 25 per cent seats were reserved for the poor students in the private schools, the same were reduced to 10 per cent following protest by private schools in 2013. For the EWS students of Class 9 to 12, it was decided that private schools will be given only tuition fee that will be equivalent to that of government schools.
Our management is planning to take some action as there is no govt order on this. We will have to start charging some fees as we have no other option. We cannot ask the students to leave.
MANOHAR LAL , principal, DPS Mathura Road