Private colleges move Punjab and Haryana High Court over move to scrap elementary edu diploma

Ravinder Saini

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Rohtak, March 15

The ongoing row between the state government and self-financed private colleges over discontinuation of diploma in elementary education (DElEd) course from the coming academic session has reached the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The Haryana Self Finance Private Colleges Association (HSFPCA), a group of private institutions, has filed a civil writ petition challenging the

government’s decision of discontinuing the course on multiple grounds. First hearing of the case will take place on Thursday. The association is seeking quashing of the government’s decision.

The government had, on November 7, 2022, decided to discontinue the DElEd course in all Block Institutes of Teachers Education (BITEs), Government Elementary Teachers Training Institutes (GETTIs) and private self-financed colleges in the state from the next academic session (2023-25) in consonance with the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020.

At present, the two-year course with a total intake of 21,050 is being run in 395 government and private institutes in the state. The admissions were made by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), Gurugram, through counselling. Around 9,000 seats remained vacant due to the poor response of students to the course in the ongoing academic session (2022-2024).

“The government’s decision is contrary to the provisions of the National Council for Teachers’ Education (NCTE) Act and the Right to Education (RTE) Act. The DElEd course is governed under the provisions of the NCTE Act, 1993, hence the NCTE is the only competent body to frame an opinion as to whether the course is required to be discontinued,” said Satish Khola, president, HSFPCA, while sharing the grounds of the writ petition.

He claimed there were no directions in the NEP directing the NCTE or any state to curtail/cease the course. Recently, the NCTE, in view of the government’s decision, withdrew recognition of all 395 institutions to run the course but it rolled back its orders when the association approached the Delhi High Court, he added.

He further said no opportunity was also given to private colleges to present their views before taking the decision.

9,000 seats vacant

• The govt had, on Nov 7, 2022, decided to discontinue diploma in elementary education (DElEd) from the next academic session (2023-25) in consonance with the NEP-2020
• At present, the two-year course with a total intake of 21,050 is being run in 395 govt and private institutes in the state
• As many as 9,000 seats remained vacant due to the poor response of students to the course during the ongoing session