Bengaluru: While Tamil Nadu pays private schools Rs 25,155 to Rs 33,806 as Right to Education (RTE) reimbursement per child, Madhya Pradesh has calculated the per-child expenditure at Rs 4,419.The observation was made by the Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools of Karnataka (KAMS), which has been seeking a uniform national methodology for deciding per-child expenditure.The association has compiled per-child expenditure figures for states across the country. Karnataka pays Rs 8,000 to Rs 16,000. Among the high payers are Delhi (Rs 19,176), Tripura (Rs 21,138), and Maharashtra (Rs 17,670).Andhra Pradesh has different reimbursement rates based on geography: it is Rs 8,000 for urban areas, Rs 6,500 for rural areas, and Rs 5,100 for tribal areas. “Several states continue to reimburse schools based on notifications issued between 2013 and 2018, despite significant increases in elementary education budgets, enhanced central assistance under Samagra Shiksha, and substantial investments in digital education, infrastructure, teacher-capacity building and other educational initiatives. The absence of periodic revision has created wide disparities in reimbursement across states under the same central legislation,” observed D Shashi Kumar, secretary, KAMS, in his letter to the Centre.“In the interest of transparency, cooperative federalism, and faithful implementation of the RTE Act, we humbly request the govt of India to prescribe a uniform national methodology for determining per-child expenditure and to direct every state and union territory implementing the Act to publish an annual audited per-child expenditure declaration in the public domain,” he added.As per the Union ministry, the number of seats earmarked under RTE quota in Karnataka was nearly 1.7 lakh in 2025-26.
