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The Centre has decided to open more Delhi-based ‘Sanskriti’-type schools in other parts of the country for children of civil servants.

The move comes after the government noticed problem being faced by the officers who on transfer to metro cities or any other location in the middle of an academic year find it very difficult to secure admission for their children.

It is, therefore, the view of the government is that as a welfare measure the Government of India should also encourage and support opening of Sanskriti type schools in other parts of the country,” a draft policy issued on Tuesday by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.

Similar initiatives have been taken for quite some time to cater to the educational needs of the children of the armed forces. A chain of army, navy and air force schools are run under the aegis of Army Welfare Education Society, Navy Education Society and IAF Educational and Cultural Society respectively, it said.

Even though Kendriya Vidyalayas exist in several cities of the country to cater to the educational needs of wards of government employees, these do not fulfil the objectives to resolve the problems of transferable central government employees,” the draft policy said.

The proposal to set up Sanskriti-type school in any state capital may be initiated by the state government. It is not intended that such schools will necessarily be set up in every state capital.

Central government support would be provided only after careful examination of the justification with priority given to large metro cities where large number of officers are posted,” it said.

It is proposed to set up Sanskriti-type school in state capitals, including Lucknow, for which five acres land has already been alloted at Chak Ganjariya by the state government, and Shillong, for which an memorandum of understanding with the state government and ten acres of land has been earmarked by state government at Mawdinangdiang for the purpose, the proposed policy said.

Sanskriti School was set up here in 1998 to cater to the needs of all India as well as central services officers, including Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and Indian Revenue Service (IRS) - who come to Delhi on transfer. As many as 2,834 children study in various classes - up to Class 12 - at the school.

As per the new policy being finalised by the Centre, the fee structure of Sanskriti-type schools would be such that they are able to meet all the recurring expenditure needs themselves.

They may, however, receive donation from non-government organisations to further develop infrastructure. These schools may also charge a differential fee from wards of general public,” it said.

Twenty-five per cent of seats in the schools would be reserved for children belonging to disadvantaged groups and weaker sections and 15% may be kept for general public.

Citing difficulty faced by officers in the absence of Sanskriti-type schools in other parts of the country, DoPT said one major problem faced by officers upon transfer is to arrange for quality education for their children.

Change in educational board causes stress to children due to change in syllabus and books. Quite often schools refuse admission during the mid-academic session. For this reason, officers often do not relocate with their families, which adversely affects their efficiency and morale.

Anxieties and difficulties faced by officers on this account surpass other anxieties associated with the transfer. Government considers it a part of its duty as an employer to alleviate these anxieties of officers which act as an impediment in smooth transition of officers from one station to another,” the policy said.