Observing that admission into pre-primary class must be a "national mission", the Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, "neighbourhood schools" are constitutionally and statutorily obligated to admit students allotted by the state government without any delay.

Reiterating the obligation of private unaided neighbourhood schools to admit students allotted under the RTE framework without delay, a bench of justices P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe said that denial of such admissions undermines the fundamental right to education guaranteed under Article 21A of the Constitution.