'RTE will instill a sense of equality'

Union Human Resource Development (HRD) minister Kapil Sibal has ruled out the need for private schools to hike their fees in order to reserve 25% seats for students from socially and economically backward classes.

Union Human Resource Development (HRD) minister Kapil Sibal has ruled out the need for private schools to hike their fees in order to reserve 25% seats for students from socially and economically backward classes.

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"In a school of 1,200 students, having 100 students per class, the RTE provisions would apply to just 25 students. Will the private schools collapse because of this? They have so many reserve funds. Why not cannot use it for social cause?"

Sibal said the state governments would provide funds for the implementation of the RTE Act. "Under this 25% reservation, they will have to give the same amount they spend for a child in a government school."

"There are all kinds of subsidies. Why can we not have subsidy in schools?" he asked, adding: "When there can be subsidised education in state and central universities, then why can it not happen in schools?"

"There are so many private schools, especially in remote villages, where the fee is less than that in government schools. Don't you think these schools will benefit from this Act?" he said.

"I am happy that now there is a complete clarity. And I am grateful to the Supreme Court for this. We must realise that education should be child-centric and not institution-centric and this is what this provision under RTE aims to accomplish," he said.