BALASORE : Private schools in Mayurbhanj district have decided to reserve 25 per cent of seats for poor students to impart free education to them.
At least 72 schools agreed to follow the norm under Right To Education (RTE) Act 2009, which mandates free and compulsory education for all children.
Though according to the Act, which in force for the last four years, all private schools have to reserve 25 per cent of seats for children belonging to SC, ST, minority community and BPL category; most of the private schools in North Odisha region have been flouting the norm.
Source said of the 277 private schools in Mayurbhanj district, 72 have come forward to adhere to the norms prescribed in the Act. As per an estimate, 616 poor children will get chance to get admission in these schools.
The Act makes education a fundamental right of every child between the age of six and 14 and specifies minimum norms in elementary schools.
While the students will be imparted education free of cost, the expenditure will be reimbursed by the State Government as part of the public-private partnership plan.