Students under 25 percent RTE quota to get reimbursed by Gujarat Government

The Gujarat Education Department has recently announced that it has made an additional allocation of Rs. 3,000 per child apart from the already sanctioned Rs. 10,000 which gets reimbursed per child for the children reading in various private schools annually. The decision has come under the 25 percent reservation clause for economically weaker section and disadvantaged groups who study at the private schools (under RTE Act 2005).

For 30,000 students in the state who are studying presently at various private schools the government has allocated a total of Rs. 12.92 crore for the academic session of 2015-16, under the 25 percent reserved seats clause in private schools for economically backward students. For non-tribal areas the majority of the amount (78%) which is accounted as Rs. 10.20 crores has been reserved by the government. The remaining Rs. 1.81 crore has been allocated for the students who are from various other tribal areas and from other reserved categories.

The additional amount has been added for providing school uniforms, shoes, books, transportation facilities and school bags to the needy students. This would also help them to get their study materials on time and help in addressing any further requirements for school assessments.

According to Mukesh Kumar, commissioner of schools, “The main idea behind providing these additional items for the children from disadvantaged groups is that they do not feel left out among children in private schools who come from sound financial backgrounds. This is a step forward for them. This is entirely a state initiative over and above the reimbursed (Rs. 10,000) part to the private schools.”