Fill up EWS seats in all pvt schools in the next five years, HC tells govt

HT Correspondent

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court has asked the city government to take steps to ensure that the backlog of unfilled reserved seats -- under economically weaker sections (EWS) and disadvantaged groups (DG) categories -- in private schools are filled up in the next five years in a phased manner.

A bench of Justices Najmi Waziri and Vikas Mahajan said that the state should ensure that the 25% seats reserved for EWS and DG groups are filled up on the basis of declared sanctioned strength at the entry level -- preschool, nursery, pre-primary, kindergarten (KG) and Class 1 -and not on the basis of the actual number of students admitted in the general category.

“In instances where schools have not complied with the strict requirements of admission of EWS category students, the state has to step-in to the aid of the latter and exercise its duty as a welfare state. No beneficiary of gov

The reservation rule

Private unaided schools have to admit 25% students from the economically weaker sections and disadvantaged groups categories for which the govt pays the school a fee equivalent to the expense of a student studying in a govt school.

Number of schools found violating the rule "No beneficiary of government land can overlook or avoid its obligation under the allotment" - HC bench

ernment land can overlook or avoid its obligation under the allotment,” the bench said.

“...every endeavour shall be made by the state to ensure that the backlog of unfilled seats in private schools, both on private and government lands, is filled

up in the next five years in a phased manner, that is, 20% of the vacancies each year, in addition to the mandated annual 25% intake,” it said in its order of May 26.

The court asked the Delhi government to file a compliance affidavit before the next date and listed the matter for further proceedings on August 4.

The court’s order came on May 26 while hearing an appeal by an NGO, Justice for All, challenging a single judge’s order declaring the last date of admission under EWS category be December 31 each year.

On February 18, while giving interim relief in the plea, the court had asked the government to issue fresh advertisements seeking applications for selection of children against nursery seats reserved for EWS, disadvantaged groups and persons with disability.

The court had said the methodology followed for admissions until now will apply to this process as well and the exercise should be completed within 15 days.

On March 29, the court asked the Delhi government to file an affidavit stating the existing vacancies under EWS category, after the government counsel said they had received 44,000 applications against 50,000 EWS category seats in private schools.

Delhi government’s standing counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi submitted that 132 private schools have prima facie been found to be violating the government’s direction on admission of students in the EWS category, adding that notices have been issued to them. He further noted that some schools have not been admitting EWS students for the last decade or so.

Under the EWS category, the court’s May 26 order noted, private unaided schools in Delhi have to admit 25% students in the EWS category for which the government pays the school a fee equivalent to the expense incurred on a student in a government school.

THE COURT ASKED THE GOVT TO FILE A COMPLIANCE AFFIDAVIT BEFORE THE NEXT HEARING ON AUGUST 24