Number of seats under RTE in Karnataka continues to remain shrouded in confusion

MYSURU: The state government’s decision to amend the Right to Education ( RTE ) Act to ensure primacy of enrolment in government schools has come as a shocker for poor parents in most wards of the city as they won’t be able to send their children to private unaided schools from this year. As per the amendment, parents are allowed to enrol children in the free seats in private schools only if there are no government schools in the vicinity. The Act defines vicinity as a radius of 1km.

According to sources, the wards of Mysuru City Corporation are spread over three academic blocks—Mysuru North, South and Rural. The highest number of wards is under Mysuru North educational block. In this block, out of 42 wards, children from only two wards will have the opportunity to apply for the free seats in private unaided schools as there are no government schools in these two wards. All the other wards have government schools, which means those who were eligible to admit students under RTE Act in private schools till last year, will have to admit them in government schools only from this year.

Speaking to TOI, MR Shivaram, block education officer, North block, said 42 corporation wards come under his block. “Out of these wards, only two don't have any government schools,” he said. “Last year, there were 957 free seats in private unaided schools in North block,” he said.

A final data on the number of seats available in private schools in the city limits is expected to come only by March 15.

Shivarame Gowda, block education officer, South block, said only four wards in his area do not have government schools.

Krishna, BEO, Rural block said a final data could be arrived at only after going through a list of neighbourhood schools.

Meanwhile, some parents are not even aware of the changes in the RTE Act. “We are waiting for the notification. We hope the rules and seats will be the same like previous years. We wish there are no changes,” said Mangala, a roadside vendor from Nanjumalige.

According to Nagasimha G Rao, coordinatior, Child Help Line, the amendment in RTE Act will definitely affect poor parents. “These parents will not send their kids to government schools. Instead, they will be forced to take loans to send their kids to private schools. We wish the government sticks to the earlier rule,” he said.

The move to reduce admissions in private schools under RTE was first initiated in 2017 when then education minister Tanveer Sait had said the cost of educating children in private schools was a huge burden on the exchequer. “In the past five years (2013-2017), the Karnataka government has spent over Rs 800 crore to educate children in private schools,” Sait had said. “It means we have lost so many students to private schools, who otherwise would have studied in our schools. We want to promote government schools,” he had said.

