Election of parents to Delhi school committees on Saturday

Election of parents to School Management Committees (SMCs) in more than 1,000 Delhi government schools will be held on Saturday.

The election will be held for 12 out of 16 posts in SMC of 1,029 schools across the city.

Parents whose children study in morning shift schools will be able to cast their vote from 8 a.m. to 11.30 a.m., while in evening shift schools, the voting will take place from 1 p.m. to 4.30 p.m.

The 16-member SMC, comprising the principal or head of school, 12 parents, a social worker, a teacher of the school, and an elected member of the local authority, reviews functioning of the school and strives to improve its working.

The revival of Right to Education (RTE) Act-mandated SMCs has been one of the concentration areas of the AAP-led Delhi government.

This is the second election to SMCs after the first was held in 2015. The two-year term of SMC members ended this year.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said that community and parent involvement in keeping government schools accountable has proved to be the most effective reform in the government schools.

"Parents of children are naturally the most invested stakeholders in the schools and they have successfully used the SMC platform to improve the condition of schools from within.

"Tomorrow's election will not only elect the new parent representatives in SMCs, but will also cement the culture of community participation in the management of public schools in Delhi," he said.

The government has deployed ad hoc DANICS officers and other officials as observers to ensure free and fair elections in all 1,029 schools.

--IANS

nkh/him/vd