Parents who wish to avail of admissions under the 25% quota for the poor under the Right To Education (RTE) Act have been exhausting themselves looking for help in filling admission forms. This, despite the existence of help centres.
Parents who wish to avail of admissions under the 25% quota for the poor under the Right To Education (RTE) Act have been exhausting themselves looking for help in filling admission forms. This, despite the existence of help centres.
Thanks to BMC's education department which has opened help centres and verification centres at different locations to help parents fill the online RTE forms. Activists claim that lack of awareness about the existence of these centres, or where they are located are driving parents to NGOs for help.
According to the education department which is holding the RTE admission process, there are help centres, verification centres, as well as centres for filling up forms. Parents seeking admission under RTE quota can fill up the forms for their child free of cost at help centres or the form centres, and get the related documents checked at verification centres, confirming if they are eligible to apply for the quota.
However, parents have little clue as to how to approach the process, so they are turning to NGOs.
One such aggrieved parent (name withheld on request) said, "I am seven-months pregnant and have had to run from one place to another, filling the form and verifying the required documents. I have been facing this situation for the past two months. My documents of income certificate were also made wrong . Then I had to go to the NGO in Andheri for the correct document."
According to NGOs, parents are approaching them because they are not aware of these help centres, even the ones appointed by the education department.
Director of Desh Seva Samiti, Avisha Kulkarni, said, "The reason parents are approaching NGOs to file online application are that they are not aware where these help centres are. Also, sometimes the scanner does not work in help centres or some other reason. Parents have complained to me that in some areas they are being approached by the touts who are demanding Rs25,000 to confirm admission for their child. Some cybercafes are also filling the forms online for parents and charging them Rs1,000."
A civic education department official said, "The help and verification centres are not that far. They are hardly a few metres from each other."
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