Prior to the amendment, the RTE Act required all unaided and private schools to reserve 25 per cent of their entry level seats for children from socio-economically backward sections.
This was to promote the goal of ensuring that all children between ages of 6 and 14 years get free and compulsory education, regardless of their economic or social background.
The government was to reimburse the private schools with the fee for admitting students under the RTE quota.
On February 9, a proviso was added to the State RTE Rules by a gazette notification which stated:
“Provided that the local authority shall not identify the private unaided school, for the purposes of 25% admission of disadvantaged group and weaker section under 2013 Rules where government schools and aided schools are situated within one-kilometre radius of that school.”
This notification also clarified that if no aided or government school was located nearby, private schools would not be exempted from having to admit students under the RTE quota (for which they would receive reimbursement from the State).
Source: Barandbench
