Patna, Jan. 24: Confused over the implementation of Right to Education Act provisions, most schools in the capital have deferred their admission dates.

Schools are waiting for the Supreme Court decision, due in February, over the petitions challenging the RTE provisions. Even minority schools have filed a petition against the act.

Many schools, where the admission process is already over, may have to cancel the new entries.

School authorities are confused since the state government has demanded that the Right to Education Act be implemented but not given clear-cut instructions on how to go about it.

Principal of DAV, BSEB, Ramanuj Prasad said: “We may start the admissions in February or extend it to March. We have to decide on how to implement the Act.”

Prasad said: “We may not take a single penny from the government to teach the underprivileged children but we need to know the exact manner of implementation. We are waiting for the instructions from the state government and the school management.”

The minority schools too are in dilemma as to what to do about the RTE provisions.

A principal of a minority school said that Article 15A of the Constitution states that the minority schools are not included in the Right to Education Act.

However, even the minority schools are being asked to implement the Act. Article 29 and 30 (1) of the Constitution also give linguistic and religious minorities a fundamental right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.

D.K. Mukherjee, principal of Gyan Niketan, said: “Admissions are on in the schools keeping in mind 25 per cent seat reservation for underprivileged kids. Whatever instructions would come from government, we would follow them.”

During the meeting held on Sunday with district magistrate Jitendra Kumar Sinha, information about RTE provisions was communicated to all the school principals and Association leaders.

The school authorities were told that no captivation fee is to be charged and no interview or screening test of the children or their parents is to be conducted at the time of admission.

The educational qualifications of the parents should not be a criterion for the admission.

Now, the school authorities are confused whether the test is not to be conducted for admission to any class up to standard VIII or is it just for the beginners.

In the instructions, it has been mentioned that schools should frame an admission policy and the same should be made public to all.