Nursery admissions begin today; schools cannot compel parents to buy prospectus: DoE

Admissions to entry-level classes in private unaided recognised schools will begin on Friday, with schools to upload their point system criteria online.

The minimum age of admission to nursery is over three years, four years and above for lower kindergarten, and over five years for upper kindergarten.

Alka Kapur, principal of Modern Public School, Shalimar Bagh, said, “For this year, the age criteria remains the same. The new age criteria will come into effect after two years.”

The Delhi government had notified the uniform age of six for Class 1 students, in line with the National Education Policy, 2020. According to the Directorate of Education (DoE) schedule, the admission process will be concluded by March 19, 2026.

Like other years, admissions will take place based on the point system, wherein a candidate receives points based on criteria set by the school. Several principals said points regarding home distance and siblings in the same school will remain in place.

Jyoti Arora, principal of Mount Abu Public School, said, “The criteria for points in my school are the same as in other years, including distance, siblings, and alumni. I have added five points for a single girl child this year.”

Abolished criteria

The DoE has reiterated that no school will adopt criteria previously abolished by the department, including ‘parents’ education’ and ‘meritorious child’. The schools cannot charge capitation fees or compel parents to purchase prospectus, the DoE added.

The DoE said that a district-level monitoring cell will oversee compliance and address grievances. Parents can seek clarification on point allocation from January 24 to February 3, 2026.