Significant modifications to the admission process under the Right to Education (RTE) Act have been introduced through a Government Resolution issued by the State School Education Department. Under the revised framework, it has been mandated that parents applying for the 25% reserved seats through the online portal will be shown only those schools situated within a one-kilometre radius of their registered residential address. The change has been positioned as a measure aimed at streamlining allocations and ensuring neighbourhood-based admissions.
Under the earlier system, a wider pool of schools had been made available to applicants during the online selection stage, and supporting documents were typically verified at the time of admission. However, it has now been specified that a maximum of ten schools may be selected, provided they fall within the defined one-kilometre limit. In cases where the number of applicants exceeds the available seats in any eligible school, the lottery process will be conducted in the first round itself. It has been clarified that only one school will be allotted to each selected child.
Stricter documentation requirements have also been introduced. All mandatory documents are required to be uploaded during the online application process. It has been directed that the residential address must correspond with the details recorded on the Aadhaar card, failing which physical verification may be undertaken. Schools have been instructed to issue official receipts to parents regardless of whether admission is granted or refused, and admission status updates are required to be recorded on the system.
Provision has been made for grievance redressal. It has been stated that online complaints may be filed in cases where admission is denied. Authority to act on such complaints has been granted to group education officers and regional officials. Where Aadhaar cards are not available for children at the time of admission, responsibility has been assigned jointly to parents and schools to facilitate enrolment. Updates to Aadhaar details are required to be completed on both the RTE portal and the Saral system.
The admission schedule for the 2027–28 academic year has been announced for the period between January and April. Registration under the 25% quota has been made compulsory for all eligible schools. It has also been warned that admissions will be cancelled if forged income certificates or fabricated documents are detected, and legal proceedings may be initiated in such instances.
Political reaction has already been witnessed. Criticism has been voiced by Aam Aadmi Party state spokesperson Mukund Kirdat, by whom it was alleged that private schools are awaiting nearly ₹2,200 crore in pending reimbursements. Concern has been expressed that the newly introduced one-kilometre restriction could lead to unfilled seats, potentially lowering the government’s reimbursement obligations. The policy shift has therefore been placed at the centre of both administrative reform and political debate.
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