Yesterday I read a column by Kate Darnton in Hindustan Times regarding the plight of parents for getting their kids admitted in a good nursery school..and I must admit the facts were painful and was an eye opener. Chances of getting inside a reputed nursery school in Delhi is real tough…getting admitted in Harvard is easier. The author gave a good example. She says “Last year, the Hindustan Times ranked Shri Ram the number one school in South Delhi. Over the past few weeks, the school’s website has listed 1,575 three-year-old candidates competing for 112 spots, including 40 spots reserved for the EWS (‘Economically Weaker Section’), staff, and management. With only 72 remaining seats, that leaves each regular candidate a 4.7 per cent chance of getting in. Last year’s acceptance rate at Harvard College was 7.1 per cent.”So you can imagine the situation. Things are much worse in Mumbai. All parents in the Metros have to go through this ordeal. The competition is tough everywhere. Be it the posh school or the neighborhood government sponsored school…there is an extreme supply demand mismatch. Too many kids are chasing too few seats.
I think only one thing can ease the situation a bit. It is the rapid development of tier II cities. My home town Haldia has quite a few good inexpensive schools. Yes, they might not be so good and stylish like the ones in Delhi but they give the education that is required. And whatever the shortfall…it can be managed by other means. Like I was never introduced to Horse Riding, Fine Dining, or Squash skills in my school. The Delhi kids in posh schools have these skills. But every morning I used to go for a walk to the river side with my Grandpa. Morning walk was our routine. And breathing the fresh air, listening to the birds, watching the sparkling water…these are also valuable. But then today’s double income corporate couples have no time for their kids…and besides where is a river in Delhi? And birds? So the kids have to manage with the expensive things like Horse riding and fine dining skills. Probably the school knows that these kids once big will leave for bigger cities…so they should be prepared. And that city will also have no river.
