Government has abolished MPs’ quota in admission to the Kendriya Vidyalayas after enactment of the Right to Education Act that reserves 25 per cent seats in the school for local students.
Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said the MPs could earlier nominate two students from certain sections of society to KVs.
Under the Right to Education Act, 25 per cent seats in Kendriya Vidyalaya have been reserved for civil category -- for people in 3-km radius of the school, he said.
Explaining the reason behind abolishing the quota, Sibal said many people had approached him saying they did not know any Member of Parliament but wanted students’ admission. “I can’t answer them.”
Against 2,800 students that MPs could nominate in 977 Kendriya Vidyalaya in the country, the Act now provides for reservation to 25,000 students (considering 10 lakh students study in KVs), Sibal said.
The move to abolish MPs quota was strongly protested by members cutting across party line. Ruling Congress, SP and BJP members led vociferous protests but the Minister was unrelenting.
“It is evident that members want right above citizen,” Chairman Hamid Ansari observed asking members to resume their seats.
Earlier, Sibal said the Right of Education Act stipulates that no entry test is conducted for admission to Class 1-8 and Kendriya Vidyalaya admission process was being tuned to the new regulation.
There are 977 functional Kendriya Vidyalayas and 576 functional Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas in the country.
