3+ kids left in the lurch

CHANDIGARH: Coming as a setback for parents seeking 'early admission' for their kids in some of the prestigious schools in Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that only kids who are four-plus can be admitted in nursery or LKG class while for UKG the age limit is five-plus.
The high court on Wednesday set aside the directions passed by a single bench of Justice Mahesh Grover that had earlier given a six-month relaxation in last date of birth to be eligible for admission for nursery and upper KG classes in these schools.Setting aside Justice Grover's orders, the division bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Augustine George Masih of allowed four schools ' Sacred Heart, Carmel Convent, St John's and St Anne School ' to complete admission process as per their originally announced age cut off, that was March 31, 2007, for nursery/LKG and March 31, 2006, for UKG/KG.
The dispute had arisen as the petitioner parents had pleaded that their wards born from April 1, 2007, to September 30, 2007, were made ineligible for admission in the ensuing academic session. It was further submitted that by the time they become eligible for admission in Class I, all such children would be well beyond six years, which is the minimum age for admission to Class I.
Hearing the petition, on February 15 a single bench headed by Justice Mahesh Grover had directed these schools to extend the cut-off date and fixed September 30, 2007, for nursery/LKG and September 30, 2006, for UKG/KG class as a one-time measure.
In their appeal filed against this order, the appellant schools had contended that eligibility of prospective students was fixed at April 1, 2006, to March 31, 2007, in the present year to ensure that children admitted at the entry level class (nursery) reach the age of six years by the time they became entitled to seek admission in Class I. They reasoned that the aforesaid transformation was necessary to implement the Right to Education Act (RTE).
Hearing both the parties, the bench held that the argument of such parents does not meet the test of logic, as their wards do not stand debarred from admissions by the policy of the schools.
With these orders, all those parents who had submitted admission forms of their wards in lieu of February 15 orders passed by a single bench of HC, will not be considered for admission in the coming academic session in the nursery/LKG and UKG classes.