Page 22 - Education World Nov-21 Low 81.6MB

Education News

cational programmes and testing the schools having incurred consider-
thinking rather than memorisation able capital outlays to provide online
skills of students,” says Arun ab h learning and continuing to pay teach-
Si n g h, director Nehru World ers’ salaries. Inevitably this unilateral
School, Ghaziabad. reimbursements cut has hit the state’s
It is often remarked that it takes 32,000 estimated low-fee budget pri-
a crisis to goad the government bu- vate schools (BPS) hardest.
reaucracy — CBSE is an autonomous According to Jagtap’s report dated
subsidiary (some say handmaiden) November 2, 2020, Maharashtra’s
of the Union ministry of education private schools were getting higher
— into purposeful action. Reform s.12 (2) per-child reimbursements at
of CBSE’s half-century-old school- Rs.17,670, whereas private schools in
leaving exams system promises to other states such as Karnataka and
be a beneficial outcome of the Covid Gujarat were being reimbursed a pal-
crisis which has severely damaged try Rs.4,300 and Rs.13,000 per child
the education system and economy. per year.
Autar Nehru (Delhi) Kalbande: extortion charge However, according to the Nagpur-
based RTE Foundation which has ob-
MAHARASHTRA government’s calculation of per child tained information under the Right
Time of reckoning expense by public schools is Rs.17,160 to Information Act, 2005 from sev-
per annum. Last May, on Jagtap’s
eral state governments, the Karnataka
recommendation the state govern- state government pays private schools
HE MAHARASHTRA STATE govern- ment unilaterally reduced the payout Rs.16,000 per year for children admit-
ment’s ill-advised initiative to Rs.8,000 per child or actual fees of ted under s.12 (1) (c) and Delhi state
Tto slash the reimbursement private schools, if lower. pays Rs.17,000.
amount payable to private unaided Statewide, 700 non-minority (mi- English medium budget private
schools admitting students under s.12 nority schools were exempted by the schools are under tremendous
(1) (c) of the Right of Children to Free Supreme Court in 2012) English- “pressure to keep themselves
& Compulsory Education (aka RTE) medium schools reserve 25 percent afloat. However, instead of helping us
Act, 2009, has boomeranged. of their seats in classes I-VIII for chil- survive, the state government is de-
Dat t at ray J ag t ap , director of the dren from economically weaker sec- nying our rightful reimbursements.
school education department, who tion (poor) households in their neigh- Making part payments to select
recommended that the amount pay- bourhood as mandated by s.12 (1) (c). schools, instead of clearing the whole
able by the state government to pri- However, the state has been taking its backlog for a particular year, suits cor-
vate schools under this provision of time to reimburse private schools the rupt education ministry officials who
the Act should be reduced to Rs.8,000 amounts due to them under s.12 (2). demand cuts and commissions from
from Rs.17,670 per student per year, Pending dues under this head schools demanding rightful compen-
has been transferred to the examina- have aggregated Rs.1,800 crore over sation under s.12 (2). After a year and
tions department. Moreover, now the the past three years ended March 31, a half of schools closure, BPS are in
state government is in the unenviable 2021. In blatant violation of s.12 (2) dire straits and the unilateral reduc-
position of having to explain unpaid of the RTE Act, successive state gov- tion of compensation due to them un-
arrears of Rs.1,800 crore before the ernments — including the incumbent der s.(12) (2) has resulted in corrupt
Nagpur bench of the Bombay high Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi coalition education ministry officials extorting
court. (Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress) — sums that school managements can
The landmark RTE Act guarantees have been slow to discharge their s.12 ill-afford,” says Sachi n K al b an de ,
all children aged 6-14 years free-of- (2) obligation to private schools. In national president, RTE Foundation.
charge admission into classes I-VIII academic year 2019-20, the govern- Now with the Nagpur bench of the
in neighbourhood schools, even if ment reimbursed a mere 50 percent Bombay high court having admitted a
they are privately promoted institu- of dues without clearing the previous writ petition filed by foundation, the
tions. The Act stipulates that private backlog. May 19 circular of the state govern-
schools admitting poor household Moreover, citing the closure of ment is almost certain to be struck
children should be reimbursed ex- schools during the past 16 pandemic down as ultra vires. Moreover, the
penses incurred equivalent to per months, the May 19 circular almost petitioners are confident of the court
child expense incurred by (state) gov- halved the government payout to also issuing an order for settlement of
ernments in public schools. The state Rs.8,000 per child despite private pending dues of private schools under

22 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2021