Karnataka private schools body asks PM Modi about RTE per-child expenditure variance

The Story in Brief

The Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking the Centre to fix a national standard sum for the “Per Child Expenditure” paid to private schools for children admitted under the Right to Education (RTE) quota. The association highlighted wide variation across states: Tamil Nadu pays between Rs 25,155 and Rs 33,806, New Delhi Rs 19,176, Tripura Rs 21,138 and Maharashtra Rs 17,670. By contrast, Madhya Pradesh provides Rs 4,419 and Karnataka between Rs 8,000 and Rs 16,000, the body said. It said private schools are still reimbursed based on notifications issued between 2013 and 2018, while budgetary allocations and central contributions to education have increased since then. D Shashi Kumar, private secretary of the association, said there has been no revision in the per-child amount. The association has petitioned the Prime Minister for a national model and asked that states make information on per-child expenditure for government schools publicly available.

The Indian Opinion

The story reports factual differences in the sums paid under RTE across states and the private schools’ request for a uniform national rate. The coverage relies on figures supplied by the Karnataka association and a statement from its private secretary; it does not include responses from state or central education authorities or independent cost assessments. Readers should note that the association represents private school managements and is arguing from that institutional perspective, which may reflect financial concerns as well as equity issues. A national standard could simplify reimbursements, but it would also need to account for regional cost differences and updated budgetary data. Given the lack of government comment in the article, the outcome and feasibility of the association’s request remain uncertain.

Original article: Private schools’ body in Karnataka writes to PM Modi on variance in RTE Per Child Expenditure (www.deccanherald.com)

This story was summarised and commented on by AI from the source linked above.