The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has sought the immediate intervention of Chief Minister N. Rangasamy in implementing the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, in the Union Territory.
In a letter to the Chief Minister, party secretary (East) A. Anbalagan said the Act was introduced by the Centre in 2009 with the intent to provide opportunity for economically weaker section students to study in private schools.
As per one of the provisions of the Act, private schools are mandated to reserve 25% of seats for poor students if there are no government schools in their neighbourhood.
Successive governments in the Union Territory had failed to implement the Act, he said. If the provision was enforced, 25,000 poor students residing in the urban areas of Puducherry could have made it to private schools, the AIADMK leader said.
The Chief Minister should set up a high-level committee to frame rules for implementing the Act. It would help children from economically and socially deprived sections get free education in private schools, he also said.
