Private schools in Maharashtra, located within a one-kilometer radius of a government aided school, are no longer required to offer admissions under the Right to Education (RTE) quota for economically backward students. This change has been updated in the amended rules for RTE implementation in the state.
Previously, all unaided and private schools were mandated to reserve 25 percent of their entry-level (nursery to Class 1) seats for children from socio-economically disadvantaged sections under RTE, with free and compulsory for children aged between 6 and 14 years. The government used to reimburse fees for it.
The recent gazette notification from the state’s school education department, specifies that the local authority shall not designate private unaided schools, for the 25 percent admission of disadvantaged groups and weaker sections under the Maharashtra Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2013, if government schools and aided schools are present within a one-kilometer radius of that school.
The notification further specifies that if there is no aided school in the area, private schools will be selected for RTE admissions and will qualify for fee reimbursement. A revised list of schools obligated for RTE admission will now be compiled in accordance with the updated rule, as outlined in the notification.
The decision has been well-received by private school managements who highlight the outstanding reimbursements owed by the government for RTE admissions. These schools have been opposing RTE admissions for a considerable period, primarily citing the delayed reimbursements of over Rs 2,000 crore.
Tushar Mahajan, deputy secretary of the state school education department declared that Section 38 of the RTE act grant states the power to establish rules for implementing the act. No alterations are made to the original law but only to the rules formulated in 2011 and 2013 for the implementation of RTE in Maharashtra.
In 2018, the Karnataka government issued a similar gazette notification, which is currently under challenge in the Supreme Court.
