Shreya Bhandary & Sanjeev Shivadekar, TNN | May 21, 2012, 01.57AM IST
MUMBAI: After the Supreme Court upheld theRight To Education Act norm, making it mandatory for all private un-aided non-minority schools to reserve 25% of seats for children from " weaker sections" and "disadvantaged groups", the minority development department has been flooded with requests from institutions, seeking minority status.
The school education department officials fear that many of the educational institutes are seeking to change to the minority status to evade reserving 25% seats for the poor, as the rule applies to only non-minority schools. "Non-minority schools and education institutes may make necessary changes in their management and apply to the government, asking for a change in their status," a senior education department official said. For a school to have a minority tag, it is compulsory for it to prove that two-third members of its founding group and the current management should be from the minority community. A senior minority department official said every year, they receive around 100 requests in a year. "But this year, within the first 10 days, we have already got 17 applications. In 2010, when RTE Act was implemented, 600 requests were sent to us," the official said.
The minority department has decided to vet all schools applying for minority status to weed out institutions doing so to avoid reserving 25% seats. Minority welfare minister Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan said, "The RTE Act will usher in a social change in the system. There will be no blanket approval for schools applying for minority status. The management's motive will be verified before granting the school a minority status."
Academicians, too, are worried about the trend. "Most good and famous schools are categorized as minority institutions. Now, the remaining institutions will also want the same status and that will defeat the purpose of RTE Act," said Jayant Jain, president of Forum for Fairness in Education (FFE). He added that the forum was ready to challenge the minority status of a school in the high court if it denies admission to underprivileged students.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/Mumbai-Schools-go-for-minority-tag-to-avoid-25-quota/articleshow/13324697.cms
MUMBAI: After the Supreme Court upheld theRight To Education Act norm, making it mandatory for all private un-aided non-minority schools to reserve 25% of seats for children from " weaker sections" and "disadvantaged groups", the minority development department has been flooded with requests from institutions, seeking minority status.
The school education department officials fear that many of the educational institutes are seeking to change to the minority status to evade reserving 25% seats for the poor, as the rule applies to only non-minority schools. "Non-minority schools and education institutes may make necessary changes in their management and apply to the government, asking for a change in their status," a senior education department official said. For a school to have a minority tag, it is compulsory for it to prove that two-third members of its founding group and the current management should be from the minority community. A senior minority department official said every year, they receive around 100 requests in a year. "But this year, within the first 10 days, we have already got 17 applications. In 2010, when RTE Act was implemented, 600 requests were sent to us," the official said.
The minority department has decided to vet all schools applying for minority status to weed out institutions doing so to avoid reserving 25% seats. Minority welfare minister Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan said, "The RTE Act will usher in a social change in the system. There will be no blanket approval for schools applying for minority status. The management's motive will be verified before granting the school a minority status."
Academicians, too, are worried about the trend. "Most good and famous schools are categorized as minority institutions. Now, the remaining institutions will also want the same status and that will defeat the purpose of RTE Act," said Jayant Jain, president of Forum for Fairness in Education (FFE). He added that the forum was ready to challenge the minority status of a school in the high court if it denies admission to underprivileged students.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/Mumbai-Schools-go-for-minority-tag-to-avoid-25-quota/articleshow/13324697.cms
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