34% EWS seats in Delhi’s private schools still vacant

Private schools have been admitting one EWS student from the government’s list for every three admissions under the general category in entry-level classes (nursery, kindergarten, and class 1) every year

Despite numerous interventions, 34% of seats reserved for the economically weaker section (EWS) students in entry-level classes in private schools this year are still vacant.

The seats have remained vacant despite multiple interventions by the education department (HT Photo)

“Of the around 33,000 seats allotted to EWS children this year, around 21,850 (66%) have been filled. The remaining could not be filled because the pandemic affected the general category admissions this year,” said a senior directorate of education (DOE) official, asking not to be named.

Private schools have been admitting one EWS student from the government’s list for every three admissions under the general category in entry-level classes (nursery, kindergarten, and class 1) every year. This is done to ensure that the minimum 25% reservation, guaranteed to EWS/disadvantaged group (DG) students in entry-level classes under the Right to Education Act, is maintained.

Of the 33,000 seats, 29,900 are in DoE-affiliated schools and the remaining are in schools recognised by municipal corporations.

The seats have remained vacant despite multiple interventions by the education department in EWS admissions this year. Acting on complaints by parents, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia announced in June that all EWS children allotted seats in private schools will be given admission, regardless of general category admissions. However, in a circular released in July, DOE allowed private schools to seek exemption from admitting all EWS students on the grounds of low general category admissions.

“According to a Delhi high court order, EWS admissions and general category admissions have to be in the category of 1:3. So, the department allowed schools to file for exemption only if they had taken all necessary steps to fill general category seats. We received applications from several schools and those that did not show adequate efforts to fill their seats were not given the exemption. The department is still coordinating with all district education department officials to ensure that the remaining students are not left out of the loop,” DOE official said.

On July 24, HT reported that an association of private schools in the capital said they will not be following the state education department’s orders on granting admission to all allotted EWS students as it violates the RTE Act and the 2013 Delhi high court order in a similar case.

SK Bhattacharya, president of Action Committee of Unaided Recognised Private Schools, said if a school declares 140 seats and is able to admit only 100 students under the general category, the EWS admissions should be on the basis of those 100 seats where actual admissions took place and not as per the declared seats to ensure that the 75:25 ratio between general and EWS admissions is maintained.

Experts pointed that the DOE order resulted in many schools filing for exemption and leaving EWS students at a disadvantage yet again. Ekramul Haque, who runs NGO Mission Taleem that works with underprivileged children, said, “Despite the deputy CM’s announcement, there are blatant violations taking place using the exemption. We have flagged multiple such cases to the education department from Bawana, Mehrauli, Yamuna Vihar, and several parts of Delhi but there has been no response. Parents are worried that if the child’s age crosses the age limit of seven years, they will not be eligible for entry-level classes next year.”

Shakurpur resident Nasreen Begum, mother of a six-year-old girl who was allotted a seat in a private school in Pitampura, said, “I have been trying to get my daughter admitted for the past two years. Coincidentally, my child’s name was allotted to the same school in the past as well, but the school did not even meet me. I am worried that my child’s future is at stake.”