Fate of nursery admissions in Delhi continues to be uncertain

Directorate of Education holds meeting of all game players

The fate of the nursery admissions continued to be hazy on Monday with private school associations and the non-government organisation which had initially challenged the earlier criteria in the Court facing off with the Directorate of Education.

The National Progressive School’s Conference (NPSC) which has the membership of most posh schools in the city had presented a memorandum detailing why they were opposed to the new guidelines to the Lieutenant Governor. This was forwarded to the Directorate of Education where a meeting was held between all the game players.

“There was a meeting between the school management representatives and the parents’ bodies of whom we are part of and here we put forth the reasons why the new guidelines are to be welcomed,” said Khagesh Jha of Social Jurist, an NGO which has been at the forefront of the fight to get the earlier guidelines amended.

According to the NPSC the new guidelines in which neighbourhood must necessarily be allotted 70 points weightage out of 100 is unfair since there are many pockets of Delhi where schools are not available and some where there is a density of schools. “We have gone through maps and surveyed schools in the city, there are enough schools everywhere. The distinction between good quality and bad quality should not even be considered since teachers get paid the same amount everywhere,” said Mr. Jha, adding that the schools wanted the management quota back. “This quota has been misused by the schools and it is a major source of corruption in admission to private schools. NPSC should come out with a data that how they used the discretionary quota in the last three years for the good of deserving cases. In any case, the same is discriminatory, arbitrary, against public interest and opposed to public policy,” said Mr. Jha. However, the NPSC executive chairman said that this quota is not something they wanted back or were worried about.

Nursery admissions that usually begin every year on January 1 has already been postponed to January 15 because of the back and forth. The continuing uncertainty leaves many parents and schools worried. .