Pvt schools on RTE admissions: ‘Will not take EWS kids, if govt doesn’t reimburse fees’

Private schools in UP on Thursday announced that they will not admit children from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) under the Right to Education (RTE) in the next session, if the government does not give re-reimbursement for the last six years as per the RTE Act and judgment thereafter.

Private schools in UP on Thursday announced that they will not admit children from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) under the Right to Education (RTE) in the next session, if the government does not give re-reimbursement for the last six years as per the RTE Act and judgment thereafter.

Unaided Private Schools’ Association has written to UP government demanding immediate re-imbursement of fees payable to schools for admitting/teaching children of EWS and disadvantaged sections.(File Photo)

Anil Agarwal, president of Unaided Private Schools’ Association, UP (UPSA), informed that the association has written to the state government demanding immediate re-imbursement of fees payable to schools for admitting/teaching children of EWS and disadvantaged sections, as stipulated by the Right to Education Act 2009.

FORMULA FOR PAYMENT

Anil Agarwal, president of Unaided Private Schools’ Association, UP, said that if the government does not pay reimbursement for the last six years immediately, as per section 12(2) of the RTE Act 2009 and as per the Supreme Court judgment of April 12, 2012, it would amount to a violation of law.

“The formula for payment of re-imbursement has been laid down in rule 8 (2) of the UP RTE Rules 2011 (Annexure 3), according to which the government of UP has to calculate and notify the reimbursement amount every year on September 30,” he said.

Agarwal said that if the government does not pay reimbursement for the last six years immediately, as per section 12(2) of the RTE Act 2009 and as per the Supreme Court judgment of April 12, 2012, it would amount to a violation of law.

He said the government must reimburse private schools, as per the SC judgment, according to which the re-reimbursement amount will be the actual expense incurred per student in government schools, or the actual expense incurred by the private schools per child, whichever is less.

The monthly fee reimbursement amount of Rs 450, fixed by the UP government in 2013 (vide GO dated June 20, 2013) is in contradiction with Section 12(2) of RTE Act and is also against the SC ruling of April 12, 2012, he added.

“The formula for payment of re-imbursement has been laid down in rule 8 (2) of the UP RTE Rules 2011 (Annexure 3), according to which the government of UP has to calculate and notify the reimbursement amount every year on September 30,” he said.

Agarwal said the Tamil Nadu government has regularly published the amount of reimbursement in its official gazette. (Annexure 4). Over 1,000 private unaided schools have come out in support of this demand, claimed Agarwal.