HC dismisses plea on nursery admission age

By Naziya Alvi in New Delhi

THE DELHI High Court on Tuesday dismissed the contempt plea filed by an NGO against the Delhi government for its failure to implement the court’s earlier order of fixing four years as the entry age for admission to the pre- primary class.

Justice G. S. Sistani dismissed the contempt plea filed by NGO Social Jurist, observing that the petition against the government cannot be maintained.

The court accepted the government’s stand that admission below the age of four years in the pre- primary class is not accepted as a part of the formal education of a child.

During the hearing, the government counsel also said the government is in favour of making pre- school education of a year’s duration instead of two. The government took the same stand in 2007 before a division bench hearing the PIL on the age criteria for nursery class.

Earlier, the department of education said in an affidavit it would lay down a regulatory mechanism for pre- school education. It had also told the court that it would set up a monitoring mechanism in each district to ensure all recommendations were implemented. It would also ensure that children of pre- school age did not get preference over others for admission to the pre- primary class, the affidavit said.

The plea was filed against the high court order passed in 2007, directing the government to make pre- primary education of one year’s duration instead of two.