After the amendments to Right to Education (RTE) in 2019-20, the Vijayapura district in Karnataka has witnessed a 90 percent reduction in RTE applications.
The district authorities used to receive at least 10,000 applications every academic year since RTE was enforced. As the government amended the act, this year the Department of Primary and Secondary Education of Vijayapura has merely received 1,385 applications.
The new rules said, "Students who seek admission under RTE in unaided schools, should not have any government schools within 3km of their residence. If the candidate applies for admission even after the presence of a neighbourhood government school, then the application will be rejected immediately. In another new amendment under RTE, admissions will be given only to government and aided schools as from this academic year, private unaided schools have been excluded."
The authorities have entered government, aided and private unaided schools of the area to its mapping system so that it will show the applicants whether any schools exist in their surrounding area.
Currently, in the district, there as many as 3,566 schools among which 2,114 are government, 600 aided and 852 are private unaided schools. Every year, at least 9,000 students used to get admission under RTE, but this year, it has reduced to less than 1,000.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Prasanna Kumar, Deputy Director of Department of Public Instructions said, "It is because of the new amendments we have received nearly 90 percent fewer applications. These new laws also helped us identify fake beneficiaries who use to take admission under the RTE by submitting fake residential certificates. Now, only online applications will be received which will be verified and fake ones will be immediately rejected"
"As we have received 1,385 applications, counselling will be done and seats will be allotted the earliest. Admissions will be given only to government and aided schools," stated DDPI.
