LUCKNOW, May 17 -- Although seat allotments for economically weaker section (EWS) children in Uttar Pradesh under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, have increased from 54 in 2013 to over 1.85 lakh this year, the state government has not revised reimbursement amount payable to private school per child ever since the Act was adopted in the state in 2013. The reimbursement amount in U.P. continues to be Rs 5400 annually for the past 12 years or Rs 450 pr month per child with an additional Rs 5,000 provided to RTE students for purchase of books and uniform. In contrast, Delhi reimburses Rs 26,800 annually per child while Gujarat reimburses Rs 20,000. Tamil Nadu pays between Rs 12,076 and Rs 15,711, Uttarakhand pays Rs 18,311, Andhra Pradesh reimburses between Rs 5100 and Rs 8,000 (rates vary based on locations like rural or urban area). Besides, Maharashtra reimburses Rs 17,760 yearly, Rajasthan pays Rs 14,141, Karnataka Rs 11,848, Odisha Rs 9184 and Chhattisgarh Rs 7,650. Additional chief secretary, basic and secondary education, U.P., Deepak Kumar said, "Hike or revision in reimbursement to private schools under RTE is nowhere on the agenda of the state government as of now. We have improved the infrastructure in government institutions and we encourage EWS students to seek admission in government institutions." There is a growing demand that the U.P. government must revise reimbursement to private schools. Former CBSE chairman Ashok Ganguly said, "Yes, this needs immediate revision. U.P. has one of the lowest reimbursement amounts in the country. That could be one of the reasons why the private schools are reluctant to take admission under this category." "This is more so significant because the NEP now talks of universalisation of secondary education," Ganguly added. Anil Agarwal, president, Unaided Private Schools' Association, U.P., said, "In U.P., reimbursement amount for RTE is only 450 per month and it is not as per the RTE Act that mandates that the government should pay at par with its expenses incurred for a child in government schools." "This amount should be around Rs. 3500 per month because according to the RTE Act, the amount spent per student in a government school or the fee of the private school, whichever is less, will be paid to the private schools as reimbursement and government can check the expenditure incurred in government schools, but no one listens," Agarwal claimed. Of the total 1.85 lakh seat allotment under the RTE Act, 1.06 lakh children were enrolled in private schools across Uttar Pradesh this year. So far, nearly 80,000 economically weaker section students have not got admission in private schools despite completing all formalities and prescribed rules laid by the government. Director general, school education, U.P., Kanchan Verma said, "We will try to push for further enrolment." Another education department official said, "It's heartening to see such strong momentum in RTE admissions this year." "With close to 60% confirmed admissions already by early May, I am confident that 100% enrolment can be achieved by July. Starting the application process from December itself was a critical step that allowed the system to move faster and more efficiently," she said....