CHENNAI: For the new academic year, the Directorate of Matriculation Schools has confirmed 24,868 seats under the Right to Education (RTE) Act so far. More seats out of 82,000 seats across Tamil Nadu are expected to be filled by this weekend, as per the department officials.
For the private school seats under the RTE Act, as many as 2,51,537 students have applied for as many as 82,888 vacancies from 7,740 schools across Tamil Nadu.
Speaking to DT Next, a senior official said, "Till Tuesday afternoon, 24,868 seats have been confirmed as per the confirmation extended by the parents. We expect more seats to be filled by this weekend, especially from remote rural villages."
Last academic year, overall 63,991 seats were filled through RTE.
Additionally, the department has directed all district and regional education authorities to collect fee structure details from private schools operating across the state. According to a circular, the move follows orders of the Tamil Nadu fee determination committee and aims to ensure compliance with regulations governing school fees in private institutions.
The circular states that the chairperson of the fee determination committee has instructed authorities to obtain fee structure information from all private schools, including matriculation, CBSE, and other boards operating in Tamil Nadu. The information is to be collected in accordance with the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Schools (Regulation of Collection of Fee) Act, 2009.
Further, education officials have been instructed to gather details relating to fee structures approved for the academic year and submit the information to the committee. District Chief Educational Officers (CEOs) have been asked to coordinate the exercise and ensure that data from all eligible schools within their jurisdictions is compiled and forwarded without delay.
The directive is part of the state's ongoing efforts to regulate fee collection practices in private schools and ensure adherence to statutory norms governing educational institutions.