Private school lobby trying to dilute the law, allege NGOs

Members of various NGOs  and child rights activists working in the field of free, compulsory and quality education for underprivileged children on Wednesday came out strongly against the private school lobby and accused it of trying to dilute the Right to Education (RTE) Act.

At a state-level training for various stakeholders of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 — also known as the RTE Act —  the activists alleged that the attitude of private schools of Bangalore was
discriminatory.

“They are making lame accuses. They are arguing that if poor children are made to sit with rich kids, the discipline of the school will be spoilt,” said Padmini, trustee of Child Rights Trust, an NGO based in the city.

The two-day consultation,  started on Wednesday, was organised by Karnataka Child Rights Observatory (KCRO), a Bangalore-based group.

“Private schools don’t want to take the responsibility of educating the underprivileged sections of the society. They are opposing 25% reservation for underprivileged children in the RTE Act. I want it to be increased to 75% in all schools.

Let the children of elite class compete with the best without capitation fee and get admitted to schools,” said Padmini, who has been working in the field for more than five decades.

“Private schools cannot wash  their  hands of their responsibility. Along with government and NGOs, private schools too need to share responsibility in giving free, compulsory and quality education to poor kids,” said Vasudev Sharma, convener of KCRO.

However, many private schools said they were not against providing free, compulsory and quality education to underprivileged children.

“Our school, including the members of management and teachers have read the RTE Act in detail. We respect the spirit of the act. However, the act needs a few amendments before it becomes a law,” Chitra Sharma, vice-principal of Delhi Public School (DPS), South, told DNA.

Bethany High School, Koramangala, had sent a circular to parents warning them of the consequences of implementing the neighbourhood quota concept in the RTE Act, sparking off a huge debate.