Mumbai: Students are caught in a fix as private unaided schools claim not to award admissions under Right to Education (RTE) Act if the state govt does not reimburse fees. Schools claim the state has not bothered to pay the fees of students studying under RTE and this will force them to stop awarding the admissions. Under the RTE Act, students from economically weak sections of the society can secure admissions in private unaided schools. Students can study for free till Class 8 as their entire education is managed by the state. As per the RTE Act, around 25 per cent seats are reserved for the same.
The state has not been providing sufficient funds to manage the fees of these students since several years, according to school authorities. Manik Shah, a senior member of a private unaided school, said, “We have managed the education of these students based through funds and donations from our school management. But we cannot continue like this as we are running out of funds.” However, authorities of the education department said that the state has been releasing funds at intervals.
A senior member of the department said, “We had informed the schools that we have been facing a financial crisis. But we have been releasing some funds to help schools accept new admissions under RTE.” Shah added, “It is not the question of admissions, the state should realise that once students are admitted in Class 1 we have to manage their education till Class 8. These funds are required to manage fees, stationery costs, uniform costs and other expenses.”
Parents claim students will have to bear the brunt if schools stop awarding RTE admissions. Tanushree Nikam, a parent, said, “We cannot afford to pay high-end fees of private schools. If these schools stop admissions under RTE then our children will not be able to study in these schools. They will be deprived of this privilege due to the financial tussle between the state and the school.”
