6-member panel constituted for schools seeking minority status

Following directions from the National Commission for Minority Education Institutions, a committee has been formed in the education department to make recommendations in respect of institutions seeking minority status.

The committee will have six members, including the Deputy Director 1 (school education) and District Education Officer. The committee will "make its recommendations in respect of institutions seeking Minority Status Certificate for onward transmission to the National Commission for Minority (NCM) Educational Institutions, New Delhi, for further consideration", reads the letter to the administration and the education department.

At present, the certificate is obtained directly from the NCM by individual schools. "Since the Supreme Court declared that the 25 per cent reservation for economically weaker section (EWS) students would not be applicable to the unaided minority schools, there was skepticism that those schools which had not declared themselves minority already, might do so now with the approaching deadline for RTE implementation. The committee will examine if there is any role that can be of the administration or the state education department in the process," says Sunil Bedi, a subject expert and a member of the committee. No date has been finalised for a meeting yet.

Private schools, however, are of the opinion that a state committee may have little role to play in the process. "This is not a status which is sought by way of an application, it is declared by the schools with nothing to approve or disapprove by the education department. The Census of India has already established which communities are in minority," says president of the Independent School Association H S Mamik, adding that around five schools are expected to declare the status, including St Kabir Public School, Vivek High School and Saupins school.

The school authorities at St Kabir, one of the schools having declared itself a Sikh minority, say that they were already minority in nature but did not know that an official declaration is required to be recognised as such, and are doing it now. Amongst the 12 schools already minority in the city are seven senior secondary schools, four high schools and one middle school. These include Carmel Convent School, Sacred Heart Public School, St Anne's Convent School, St Joseph School, St Xavier School, Mount Carmel School, St John's High School, Chandigarh, Baptist School, St Stephen's School, St Mary's School and Little Flower.

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