Delhi govt to grant recognition to private schools in non-conforming areas: Sood

The Delhi government has decided to grant recognition to private unaided schools in the non-conforming areas of the city, and they can now apply for the recognition from the Directorate of Education.

Making the announcement, Education Minister Ashish Sood informed that all those private unaided schools that have been functioning in non-conforming areas for a long time, but have not yet obtained recognition from the Directorate of Education, either due to procedural reasons or due to the alleged discriminatory approach of previous regime, can now come forward for the process.

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According to the minister, the online portal of the education department, for submission of applications will open on November 1, and the schools concerned that are willing to seek recognition may apply till November 30.

He said that after the process of applications is done, the received requests will be scrutinized and a list of such schools that meet all the prescribed criteria for recognition will be issued thereafter.

Sood alleged that for over a decade, this issue remained buried in files while children were denied their constitutional right to education.

He accused the previous governments of doing favoritism, recognizing a few schools, while neglecting many, and added that now under Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s leadership, the government has put an end to the selective discrimination.

Sood has called this development as not just an administrative reform, but justice for the children, fairness for our institutions and a genuine step towards democratizing education in the national capital.

The minister also informed that the initiative ensures full compliance with Article 21-A of the Constitution and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE Act), reaffirming the Delhi government’s commitment that no child shall be denied education due to administrative or location barriers.

According to his claim, the last such recognition drive was conducted back in the year 2013, benefiting only a few schools through selective approvals, he alleged.

The minister said that for more than 10 years, many schools in non-conforming areas operated without recognition, and as a result, children from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), Disadvantaged Groups (DG), and Children with Special Needs (CWSN) were deprived of recognised schooling despite living near functioning educational institutions.

He said that with this decision, nearly 500 schools will come under the ambit of the Directorate of Education (DoE), ensuring legitimacy, regulatory oversight, and accountability.

The new recognition policy is expected to generate about 20,000 additional seats, greatly expanding equitable access to quality education, he added.