CHENNAI: No toddler should be subjected to any kind of written or oral test for granting admission to a playschool, according to the revised draft regulations for play schools released by the State government on Monday.
Other changes in the regulations include a direction that play schools be located more than 100 metres away from a petrol bunk. The new regulations also mandate that CCTV cameras be installed in all play schools and an access control or security person be posted at the gate.
Further, a notice mentioning ‘Smoking, alcohol, plastic free zone’ must be placed at the entrance of each school, the revised code says. Alarms or sirens should be installed inside the building to alert public in case of an emergency. The schools must not use any gas cylinder or combustible material inside the premises.
However, the revised codes removed the regulation which required the open space inside the school to be directly proportional to the height of the building. Also, the new code has added a clause which gives managements the power to terminate teaching and non-teaching staff after their contract period expires. In a breather, the school education department has increased the time for schools to apply for approval to six months from the date of the new regulations coming into force.
The earlier code had given only three months for getting approval.
Do’s and Don’ts
O Schools can’t take oral or written admission tests
O CCTV cameras must be fixed
O No schools in the vicinity of petrol bunk
O No combustible material or gas cylinder in school premises
School timings
Three hours from 9.30 am to 12.30 pm
Break of 15 minutes per hour School must admit children residing within radius of 1 km