Delhi govt issues directions to ensure unhindered admission in EWS category

To remove the hassle in the process of Economically Weaker Section (EWS) admissions in entry classes and avoid inconvenience to the parents and children allotted seats in the draw, the Directorate of Education on Tuesday chalked out a four-point action plan on the directions of Delhi Education Minister Atishi.

The action plan was discussed during a high-level meeting where Education Minister Atishi instructed the officials that the EWS admissions for this session be done in a smooth manner. She also gave strict directions that private schools should not be allowed to act arbitrarily.

For this academic session, applications for EWS quota were invited for Nursery, KG and Class I (Entry Level Admission) in 2001 private schools affiliated to the Education Department and MCD. 2,09,753 applications were received for 37,187 seats. Candidates have been short-listed for these seats through a computerized draw of lots by the Education Department, said the official statement.

After the draw, the shortlisted candidates are allotted the school based on their choice. Parents go to these schools and get the documents verified, after which the children are enrolled in the school. Last year, the statement said it was found that in some schools when parents reached the school, they were harassed and denied admission.

To avoid a repeat of such situations, Education Minister Atishi asked the Education Department officials to proactively chalk out a 4-point action plan. This will ensure that the process of EWS admission goes hassle-free.

According to the Directorate of Education's 4-point action plan, a joint committee of the Education Department and Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) will monitor the entire admission process to make the process hassle-free. Further, a nodal officer will be appointed in every district, who will receive complaints and resolve the issue and submit a weekly report to the Education Minister. This process will be personally monitored by the Education Minister.

Regular SMS will be sent by the education department to the parents to give updates and information related to admission. Lastly, weekly tracking of the admission will be done at headquarter level.

Along with this, the Education Minister said that all nodal officers must ensure on-spot redressal of complaints regarding EWS admissions from schools under their jurisdiction. Schools showing any kind of indifference in giving admission to selected children will not be tolerated and serious action will be taken against them. In this session, the Education Department is closely monitoring the schools against which complaints were reported last year.

Atishi said that the Delhi Government has a transparent selection process for EWS admissions. If any of the schools show indifference to the selected students, action will be taken against them.

The statement said this year the Education Department has also made complete preparations to crack down on the schools which are not taking EWS admissions seriously.