New Delhi - Others   

`Private schools ignoring poor'

Special Correspondent

Authorities delaying implementation of court order on reserving 25 per cent seats for poor students, alleges ex-MP

CHANDIGARH: The former Chandigarh MP and the national convener of the Legal Cell of the BJP, Satya Pal Jain, said here on Thursday that both the Centre and the Chandigarh Administration were totally "non-serious'' about implementing the Punjab and Haryana High Court order to ensure that 25 per cent of the seats in private educational institutions which got Government land on concessional rates were reserved for poor students.

In a statement, Mr. Jain said the Court had also ruled that such schools charge only "reasonable fee" from the students. He said he was "shocked" to read a statement by the Punjab Governor and UT Administrator, S.F. Rodrigues, in which he had directed that 15 per cent seats be reserved for poor students in private schools.

Mr. Jain said the Chandigarh Administration officials were very well aware that on February 14, 2005, a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court had issued clear directions to them to reserve 25 per cent seats for poor students and to fix the fee to be charged from all students. Following the court order he said he himself led a BJP delegation to the Administrator who had assured that the judgment would be implemented from the current session.

It was unfortunate that the Chandigarh Administration did not take any concrete steps to get this judgment implemented for over five months. He alleged that some influential people belonging to the ruling Congress had been putting pressure on the Chandigarh Administration to not implement this judgment to safeguard their "economic interest''.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Gaur hits out at Maoists, cautions against cult of violence
Life term mooted for brewing spurious liquor
`Private schools ignoring poor'
Total sanitation campaign soon

Copyright © 2005, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu