63 students at a private school to lose RTE seats

Ahmedabad: Admissions of 63 students at a private school in Ghatlodia under the Right to Education (RTE) Act are set to be cancelled due to false income declarations by their parents. The decision followed a hearing at the Ahmedabad City district education officer's (DEO) office, where parents admitted to having higher incomes than the prescribed limit of Rs 1.50 lakh per annum for urban areas.
The students, currently in Classes 3 to 7, were admitted to Kalorex Future School in Ghatlodia a few years ago.DEO Rohit Chaudhary said, "During the hearing, the parents admitted to having provided false income information to avail of RTE quota. To protect the students' interests, their admissions will be cancelled at the end of the current academic year, not immediately."
The issue surfaced after the school conducted an internal investigation and reported several cases of parents exceeding the income limit. The school authorities brought this to the notice of the DEO who decided to hold a hearing.
Sources said that one notable case was that of a parent who held the position of an assistant manager in a firm and drew a monthly salary of Rs 48,000, amounting to an annual income of Rs 5.76 lakh per year. Despite this, they secured an RTE seat, meant for underprivileged kids, for their child.
The rule requiring income tax returns for RTE admissions has been in place for the past two years. Previously, many parents used affidavits to falsely declare their incomes, said sources.
Sources revealed that there is no provision to admit new RTE students to the vacant seats once admissions are cancelled. Schools may fill these seats by charging higher fees, prompting calls for the vacant spots to be reserved for eligible RTE students.
150 admissions cancelled this year
The cancellation of the admissions of 63 students is one of the largest cancellations this year so far. DEO Rohit Chaudhary said that admissions of 150 students have been cancelled so far this year. Chaudhary said that more such cases have been reported and hearings of these parents are due.