Nursery admissions may begin on Thursday

HC to hear unaided schools' plea on Wednesday

Nursery admissions in the city may start on January 16, a day later than decided by the Delhi government. Government officials told the high court that they would defer the admissions to let judges give a final decision on the issue of revised guidelines.

The high court, which refused to grant a stay on the guidelines set by Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, said it would hold a final hearing on January 15 on private unaided recognised schools’ plea.

The court on Monday said the guidelines for nursery admissions would not be applicable until the next hearing on Wednesday, though there was “no stay on the admission process”.

The Delhi government, however, told the court that it would not commence the admission process before the order. It was due to begin on Wednesday.

The court said: “This (petition) needs a detailed hearing. We are simply deferring the hearing without any order.”

The private schools moved a division bench comprising Justice Pradeep Nandrajog against the order of a single judge who had declined any interim relief by not staying the nursery admission guidelines.

The Action Committee for Unaided Recognised Private Schools had sought setting aside of the 2014-15 guidelines on the ground that the office of the Lieutenant Governor lacked the power to frame them.

The revised guidelines issued by Jung had scrapped the private schools’ management quota which entitled them to admit students on their own terms.

According to the new guidelines, 70 of the 100 points will be given to children who live within a radius of 8 km of the school. 

Besides, applicants who have sibling(s) studying in the same school will get another 20 points and five points added by default in the application of girls and wards of school alumni.

Jung divided the total seats into different categories, including 25 per cent for the economically weaker sections and disadvantaged groups, 5 per cent for children of staff and another 5 per cent for girls in co-educational schools.

General category candidates could apply for the remaining 65 per cent seats.