Decks have been cleared for implementation of Section 12 (1) (c) of the Right to Education Act that mandates non-minority private unaided schools to keep aside at least 25% of their entry-level seats for children belonging to disadvantaged sections to create a more integrated and inclusive schooling system.
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The new initiative that paves the way for children from the economically weaker sections of society to study in private unaided schools is being implemented by the Department of School Education in online mode. “The implementation of the RTE Section got delayed this year due to technical issues and permissions,” admitted Commissioner, School Education, S. Suresh Kumar.
The department will release a notification for admissions under this provision on August 10 and applications will be received through the online portal (for admissions) from August 16 to 26. The ‘lottery’ for the first list will be conducted on August 30 and the result will be announced on September 2. “The second list will be prepared based on the leftover seats,” said Mr. Suresh Kumar.
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Reservation
The 25% seats set aside under Rule 9 of the Andhra Pradesh Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2010 comprise 5% of orphan, HIV-affected and disabled children, 10% for children from the Scheduled Castes, 4% for children from the Scheduled Tribes and 6% for weaker sections, including Backward Castes, Minorities and Other Castes whose annual income does not exceed ₹1.2 lakh in rural areas and ₹1.44 lakh in urban areas.
Parents seeking admission for their children under this category should visit the online portal http://cse.ap.gov.in created by the Commission of School Education. They should select multiple schools for admission of their child as per his/her choice in the order of priority. The lottery would not be necessary for the schools in which the number of applications received was less than the total number of seats available, he said.
Distance norm
Priority would be given to the applicants whose residence was within 1 km radius from the school and then to those residing within 3 km radius, he said. “Within the neighbourhood criterion of 1 km and 3 km distance, preference would be given to the children who have siblings studying in the same school,” he added.
“This clause of the RTE intends to promote inclusivity in unaided schools and build citizenship for a just and global future,” said Tarun Cherukuri, CEO of the Delhi-based think tank Indus Action, which has been actively engaged in creating support systems for effective implementation of the RTE in 12 States through partnership with the governments.
As part of this collaboration, Indus Action is extending support in terms of governance, technology and capacity-building activities.