Delhi sets ball rolling for nursery admissions

In a first step to initiate the process of admissions to entry-level classes — nursery, KG, and Class 1 — for the 2021-21 academic session, the Delhi government on Monday directed all its district education officers to provide information regarding the seats available for general and reserved categories in these classes in all private schools across the Capital.

The Directorate of Education (DOE) issued the notification days after Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the government will soon begin the nursery admission process in private schools.

Officials of Delhi government’s education department had in December last year said they were considering skipping admissions to these classes

The centralised process for admissions to entry-level classes for over 200,000 seats in around 1,700 private schools, which usually commences in November or December, has been delayed by over two months due to the Covid-19 pandirected

NEW DELHI:

demic. The government also carries out a separate entrance process for students from the Economically Weaker Sections(ews)/ Disadvantaged Groups (DG) categories to these classes for the 25% reserved seats under the Right to Education (RTE) Act.

In Monday’s notification, the DOE asked all deputy directors of education (DDES) in the Capital to provide an updated list of all private unaided recognised schools in Delhi, the correct GPS coordinates of all the schools categorised by jurisdiction, and information regarding EWS/DG category seats at the entry-level classes.

“All district DDES are hereby to get the above exercise completed by February 15 so that further necessary action can be taken to start the online admission process for the next academic session...,” the notification read.

A senior Delhi government official, who asked not to be named, said Monday’s circular will be followed by notification detailing the registration process for admission to entry-level classes.

Principals of private schools and parents alike welcomed the move.

Ashok Pandey, director of Ahlcon Schools, said, “It is the first step towards the process of admission to entry-level classes. The government collects this data every year from private schools before starting the registration process. I hope the government will release the timeline for the admission as soon as it receives this data.”

“The government should start the registration simultaneously. It’s already been delayed by two months this year. It can easily collect the data along with the registration process,” said Jyoti Arora, principal of

Mount Abu Public School.

Anubhuti, who goes by her first name, who is seeking to enrol her three-year-old daughter for the next academic session, said, “We had been waiting to hear about the admission process. It is such a relief now. We got really disheartened when we heard that the government was considering skipping admission in entry-level classes this year.”

Ekramul Haque of Mission Taleem, an organisation working with children from EWS families in the national capital, said, “Delhi government’s notification is a big relief for thousands of families waiting to enroll their kids in a good private school under the EWS quota. We were getting panic calls from parents every day inquiring about the nursery admission process.”

THE PROCESS FOR ADMISSIONS TO ENTRY-LEVEL CLASSES IN AROUND 1,700 PRIVATE SCHOOLS USUALLY BEGINS IN NOVEMBER OR DECEMBER

Nursery admissions in Delhi soon: CM Arvind Kejriwal