The Delhi government’s Directorate of Education has announced an upper age limit bar for admissions to preschools and Class I from this year onward. The order will affect the nursery admission process set to take place between 15 December and 7 January for the 2019-20 academic session, reports The Indian Express. The admission process covers around 1,600 private schools.

The upper age limit for nursery has been set at four years, for kindergarten at five years, and for Class I at six years. The proposal had been previously challenged in the Delhi High Court, but the court had allowed the imposition of age limits.

The first list with the selected candidates’ marks will be released on 4 February, while the second list will be issued on 21 February, with the whole admission process coming to a conclusion on 31 March. Twenty-five per cent of all seats in pre-school, pre-primary and Class I will be reserved for pupils from Economically Weaker Sections/Disadvantaged Groups (EWS/DG).

All private schools have also been asked to upload their criteria for admissions to open seats and the points awarded for each criterion on the directorate’s website by 14 December. The schools had been provided with autonomy to create their own points system.