The Hindu Impact | DDE Ernakulam’s missive to AEOs reminds RTE supercedes Aadhaar when it comes to school admission

The Deputy Director of Education (DDE), Ernakulam, has issued a strict directive to Assistant Educational Officers (AEOs) successful each 14 acquisition sub-districts crossed the territory to guarantee that nary pupil is denied schoolhouse admittance for privation of Aadhaar cards, arsenic it autumn foul of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (RTE), which mandates escaped and compulsory simple acquisition for each children aged 6 to 14.

The determination comes a time aft The Hindu reported that astir 88 migrant children were denied admittance to schools for assorted reasons, chiefly the lack of Aadhaar cards. The Kochi-based Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development (CMID) could enrol lone 38 retired of the 126 migrant children it identified for enrolment during this world year. Most of them were from Assam and West Bengal, settled mostly successful known migrant idiosyncratic hubs specified arsenic Perumbavur, Muvattupuzha, and Kothamangalam.

“Apart from the wide directive, circumstantial instructions volition beryllium issued to schools accused of denying admittance to children for not having Aadhaar cards. In addition, details person been sought from schools regarding students enrolled without Aadhaar, truthful that arrangements tin beryllium made to supply them escaped textbooks,” said Subin Paul, DDE, Ernakulam. While students tin beryllium enrolled without Aadhaar cards, they would not beryllium eligible for benefits specified arsenic escaped uniforms, textbooks, and midday meals.

Thanks to the Education department’s intervention, CMID was capable to enrol 2 migrant students successful Muvattupuzha connected Tuesday. However, hurdles stay successful enrolling migrant children for Aadhaar cards, which are indispensable to marque them eligible for benefits. Previously, schools could put Aadhaar enrolment, but this is nary longer the case.

District Child Protection Office (DCPO) sources said that high-level involution would beryllium required to resoluteness the matter. “Even astatine a gathering organised successful transportation with Roshni, a task for the acquisition uplift of migrant children, earlier schoolhouse reopening, the District Collector had made it precise wide that nary pupil should beryllium denied schoolhouse admittance connected the crushed of not having Aadhaar cards,” said sources. The DCPO has besides sought details from the acquisition section regarding the alleged denial of schoolhouse admittance to children.