Private schools in Tiruppur not keen on RTE admissions, don’t display info, say social activists
TIRUPPUR: Social activists blamed private schools in the Tiruppur district for not displaying boards indicating the number of admissions under the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
As per the RTE Act all private schools should reserve 25% of seats for underprivileged children and also display the number of seats allotted to them on a board kept in front of the gate. But none of the schools keep such boards, said social activist A Palanikumar, while alleging that “this is a ploy to avoid induction of the underprivileged students in private schools.”
"The RTE Act, 2009, is a game-changer for improving the education of a child. My child has benefitted through this Act by gaining admission in a private school in Tiruppur city. The Act makes education a fundamental right of every child between the ages of 6 and 14 and specifies minimum norms in elementary schools,” he added.
Tamil Nadu Science Forum coordinator A Eswaran said, “Apart from some schools, many schools are still reluctant to display the seats declared under the RTE category. They feel that they are losing something by showing the presence of underprivileged students in their schools on these display boards. Some schools have kept small boards at the corner of the entrance. One must feel proud by displaying that.”
However, education department officials claimed that induction is more important than display boards. A School Education Department (Tiruppur) official said, “There is some hesitation on the part of private schools in Tiruppur district when it comes to induction of underprivileged students. Around 14,363 students were admitted in 270 private schools in 2022-23. Next year, 14,703 students were admitted to 276 private schools. We have all the list of students along with social backgrounds and this is a positive development for the RTE. We will be advising these private schools to keep the display boards.”