Applications under the Right to Education Act (RTE) will begin on April 22 online, according to a letter sent to all District Education Officers by the School Education Department on Tuesday.
Children born between August 1, 2020 and July 31, 2021 are eligible for LKG. The parents of the children whose income is less than ₹2 lakh are eligible and should apply with relevant documents. Parents residing within 1 km of the private schools can apply under the RTE Act to avail the 25% reservation.
The letter also stated that the authorities should make arrangements for the online application. Details of the seats under the RTE Act in entry level classes in the private schools should be published on notice boards in schools by April 10.
The details of acceptance of eligible applications and the rejected applications should be published on the website on May 27. If more applications are received than the allocated seats in the private schools, the students should be selected by lottery, which will be on May 28. The last date to file the application is May 20.
Private schools protest
However, many private schools allege that they have not yet received funding for the past two years as prescribed under the Act. “Though there have been reports that ₹383 crore has been released. We are yet to receive the money. Despite that, we are being asked to continue for a third year. We do not have the money to continue,” said K.R. Nandakumar, general secretary Tamil Nadu Nursery Primary Matriculation Higher Secondary and CBSE Schools.
