RTE proposes. School Principal disposes.

If the allegation of an aanganwadi worker is true that her daughter was denied admission by Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) ONGC even after her ward's admission was recommended under the Right to Eduction (RTE) Act by the Vadodara district education officer (DEO) then it might turn out to be just another incident in the RTE saga where schools simply deny, stall or roadblock admissions of less privileged students into mainstream schools.

Kumud Solanki, who works as a nutrition counsellor at an anganwadi, had applied for her daughter – Forum Solanki's admission in class I under RTE Act through the admission process done by the DEO office on January 17.

After the duration of the process, her daughter was selected under the draw system on February 22. She was asked to approach KV ONGC within 10 days to get her ward admitted in the school.

This is where her ordeal began. "But when I approached the school authorities, they said that they follow their own system of granting admission under RTE. It was upon their insistence that I filled up a separate form. But they refused to accept the form on the grounds that my daughter was not completing 5 years as on March 31, 2016, and hence did not fulfil the age criteria," Kumud said. The girl will complete 5 years on May 20, this year.
 
The parent later approached DEO again who told them to keep one of the 4 other schools as an option. "I was given an option to select one of the four schools including Ideal School, Jambuva apart from Manjalpur-based My Apple, Panchsheel Vidyalaya and Silver Oak," she said, adding that some officials at the DEO also informed her that admission at KV ONGC is next to impossible even after getting selected under RTE process of Vadodara DEO.

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Both Vadodara DEO Navneet Mehta and KV ONGC's principal K K Gupta could not be reached for inputs.