Maharashtra: Govt to bring pre-primary education under ambit of law

In a strategic move aimed at aligning preprimary education covering kindergarten and nursery levels with government education standards and fostering a uniform curriculum the state government plans to introduce preprimary sections within governmentoperated schools Presently preprimary education is predominantly provided by private schools or operates independently in standalone setupsAs a crucial step towards the implementation of the National Education Policy NEP the state government is aiming to incorporate all kindergarten and nursery schools within its regulatory framework As per sources the government is also contemplating application of the Fee Regulation Act FRA to govern and regulate fees in private preprimary institutionsCurrently preprimary schools nurseries and kindergartens primarily catering to children in the age group of three to sixyears do not come under the purview of any regulatory body Additionally the total number of such institutions in the state remains unknownIn 1996 the state government devised the Maharashtra PreSchool Centres Regulation of Admission Act 1996 addressing various concerns However it was scrapped even before implementation under political pressureIn 2017 the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court issued an order directing the Maharashtra government to develop a policy for the regulation of preprimary schools throughout the state by December 31 Since then efforts to implement this policy have been underwayldquoPreprimary classes have been included into the National Education Policy NEP necessitating the extension of all relevant regulations to these sections While the FRA currently applies to private primary schools adhering to feefixing rules it is imperative that preprimary schools also follow a regulated fee structurerdquo said a senior official of state education departmentState commissioner of education Suraj Mandhare told midday that this is not about financial control or fee regulations but more about getting parity in educational framework and quality of educationldquoThe implementation of the NEP is underway with efforts to integrate preprimary classes into government run primary schools through the establishment of kindergartens and nursery schools The State Council for Educational Research and Training SCERT is actively providing essential training to Anganwadi workers for this purpose already Financial aspect is not being discussed here as of now The aim is not to take control of existing private preprimary schools but to end the disparity in quality of education and curriculum followed We will soon come out with legislation for the samerdquo said MandhareExperts have been arguing that uniform legal framework curriculum and fee regulation should apply to all schools preventing discrepancies between primary and preprimary institutions by government and those operated by private organisationsldquoThe initiative to introduce KG and nursery classes in government schools within the state is commendable However there appears to be a significant oversight in the governments current strategy concerning private preprimary schools While some educational institutions are committed to providing quality education and nurturing responsible citizens others seem to exploit the education sector for profit resulting in a financial burden on parents To address this concern it is essential to establish appropriate regulations for preprimary schools and enforce fee regulation laws ensuring fairness and transparency in their fee structuresrdquo said Sushil Shejule coordinator of Marathi Shala Sansthachalak Sangh and a member of Marathi Abhyaas KendraTalking about the need for establishing and promotion of Marathi schools in remote areas of the state Shejule expressed ldquoThe governments Shalet Chala Abhiyaan for outofschool students is commendable however the need for Marathi schools in the state persists considering factors such as distance and population Despite the announcement of a new policy for the recognition of Marathi schools or areas where they are needed it is disconcerting that such a policy has not been implemented to date for the effective enforcement of the Right to Education RTE Actrdquo1996The year the previous legislation to regulate preprimary education was scrapped before implementation