You146;re kidding me!

Getting your kid into primary school in Delhi is something like sitting for an IIT or IIM entrance exam...

Getting your kid into primary school in Delhi is something like sitting for an IIT or IIM entrance exam 8212; except that there are no sample papers for reference or coaching institutes to give you an idea of what to expect. This year as usual, parents need to be prepared for the unexpected. Nobody8217;s sure of exactly how schools will be conducting admissions: the Ganguly Commission8217;s point system is still applicable but it8217;s been tweaked a little, with some powers being restored to schools to choose their students.

The Commission came up with the point system to decrease the discretionary powers enjoyed by private schools and to make the process more transparent, and less loaded in favour of those with money. But in a feeble attempt to be gender sensitive, intellectual and environmentally friendly all at once, the point system reserves five points for a girl child, twenty points if both parents hold post graduate degrees, and a controversial 20 points for living within 3 km of the school. However, this year many schools are disregarding distance after huge protests by parents who live in areas of Delhi that have no schools. It may not be officially acknowledged, but single parents or ones with adopted children usually sail into every school.

India8217;s murky history of killing female foetuses and favouring the male child has come back to haunt urban parents who didn8217;t necessarily plan to have a boy. Last year, the gender balance in nursery classrooms across Delhi was completely skewed with co-ed schools like Shri Ram taking in almost 90 per cent girls, because of the point system. With single parents being given special preference, couples, some of who have made huge sacrifices to keep their families intact have an uphill task to just get noticed, from the thousands of applications the school receives. Similarly, awarding points on the basis of parents8217; postgraduate degrees is bizarre. Even if a parent couldn8217;t get qualified, doesn8217;t mean he doesn8217;t have those ambitions for his child.

The Ganguly Commission8217;s mission may be to clean up the admission process, but the fact is there is no equality in private school education in India. The weeding out process starts from the school fees itself, prohibitive for the average Indian. The utter failure of Delhi8217;s MCD schools, who occupy prime real estate across the city has created huge pressure on private institutions. Now schools can officially hold interactions with the parents, worth between a crucial 20-25 points, so again, they can work around the point system and choose the best of the crop, intellectually and financially. But then again, private schools everywhere in the world reserve the right to choose their students