The Maharashtra school education department has announced an amendment to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE). This change will impact economically disadvantaged students' access to private schools. It will come into effect in the 2024–2025 academic year.
The revision says that if a government or government-aided school is within a kilometre of a disadvantaged child's home, the student will not be allowed to admit to a private school under the 25% RTE quota.
This essentially bars children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds from attending English-medium private schools. This may affect cities like Mumbai and Pune the most, where government schools are abundant.
The move has been met with disapproval from education professionals, who argue that it contradicts the RTE Act's intent. A similar action in Karnataka is currently under review by the Supreme Court.
Over the past ten years, the RTE Act has enabled over 500,000 economically disadvantaged children in Maharashtra to receive an education at private schools.
Reports suggest that the state owes private schools INR 1,463 crore in fees for RTE admissions over the past 12 years. Without the amendment, this amount would have exceeded INR 2,000 crore.
The revision also states that private, unaided schools wishing to participate in this will no longer be entitled to compensation.
There have also been questions regarding the state government's authority to amend RTE rules. It is suggested that the notification could be overturned by legal authorities as it conflicts with the current implementation of the RTE Act.
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