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Mangaluru: Several districts in Karnataka have failed to fill up even 25 per cent of seats reserved under the Right to Education quota in private schools this year. Prominent on the list are Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Uttara Kannada, Madhugiri, Yadgir, Kodagu, Hassan and Chitradurga education districts.
Chikkamagaluru, with a reservation of 33 RTE seats, Uttara Kannada (4) and Madhugiri (17), witnessed zero admissions under RTE quota. Bengaluru North managed to fill two out of a total of 218 RTE seats and Chitradurga three out of a total of 150 RTE seats. Other districts like Hassan, Kodagu and Yadgir have managed to fill up just five RTE seats.
In 2018, 1.2 lakh seats had been reserved under the RTE quota in 14,000 private schools. In 2024, only 3,412 out of the total 7,936 seats reserved under RTE quota had been filled. "The number of RTE seats in Karnataka has reduced and admission through RTE quota has declined," said H R Umesh Aradhya, former chairperson of Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
He referred to the Karnataka government's amendment to the RTE Act in 2018 that allowed parents to enrol their children under RTE quota in private schools if there were no government or aided schools in the vicinity.
"I am also not receiving any complaints," he said, recollecting how he was flooded with complaints about children not getting seats under the RTE quota.
Syprian Montheiro, director of public instruction (primary education), said improvements in many government schools may have prompted many parents not to opt for private schools.
"With government schools offering education in the English medium in Puttur and Sullia taluks, we have witnessed zero admissions under the RTE quota," said Moidin Kutti, SDMC Samanvaya Kendra State convenor.
Chikkamagaluru DDPI G Ranganath Swamy told DH that 33 seats were earmarked for the first round. But no student took admission under RTE quota as government schools were located close to their houses.
How seats are calculated
Dakshina Kannada DDPI (administration) Dayanand Ramachandra Nayak said eligible private schools are identified after ensuring that there are no government or aided schools in the locality.
Minority institutions and residential schools are exempted from the RTE Act. In all, 25 per cent of students who had secured admission to first standard were identified as free seats for children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups.
Department of School Education and Literacy Public Education (DSEL) after receiving applications online, earmarks seats for first and second round for admissions. This academic year, DSEL had identified 458 RTE seats in 88 private schools in Dakshina Kannada district, sources added. Eventually only 51 students enrolled under RTE quota.