In his recent post, entrepreneur and social media personality Ashneer Grover has highlighted the stiff competition parents face while getting their kids admitted into a good nursery school. On August 28, Grover wrote on X, “It’s tougher to get your 4 year old kid admission in Nursery in your preferred private school, than it is to enter IITs. At least in Delhi NCR. Ask any parent who has gone through the process in last 10 years. Demand for coveted schools far outstrips supply. If nursery school seats were auctioned in Delhi NCR, IPL would be the 2nd highest auction in the country ;)”. This tweet resonated with many people as it quickly gathered over 6,000 likes. Grover’s post prompted people to discuss the declining quality of government schools and the elitist and exorbitant nature of private school admissions. Commenting on Grover’s post, an X user wrote, “Unfortunately we can’t have more of these coveted schools. Govt schools refuse to upgrade to accommodate the burgeoning middle and lower middle classes.” Another person wrote, “FIITJEE will soon launch coaching for parents! 1) Parents thinking about having a baby in delhi NCR will have high chance 2) Weekly tests and ADR(all delhi rank) 3) PPTM(Parent - ParentTutor meet) on regular basis”. Many people also noted that the desire to get their kids admitted in “coveted” elementary schools is often motivated by societal pressure and does not hold much importance in real life. Echoing this view, an X user wrote, “my opinion may be prejudiced by me not being a parent, but i don't understand the craze for a "coveted nursery school". never in my life have i met a person to whom my first question was "which nursery did you go to?" i feel its an unnecessary burden all of our parents take.” In 2017, over 290 private schools in Delhi that were built on government land were asked to conduct nursery class admission based on the ‘neighbourhood and distance’ criteria, under which siblings were given priority. This was done to streamline the process of nursery school admissions. However, many people critiqued these guidelines on the grounds that it allowed people in affluent neighbourhoods to easily get admission to good private schools located in the same area.
