But principals still have reservations. "We have given leeway to parents this year. They can apply if their child is three and also if he is four plus... but this we know will have repercussions as the age gap is too large. At such a young age, even six months is a large timespan...'' Sarita Manuja, Principal of Apeejay School, Sheikh Sarai, says.

This also heralds a change in the pre-school industry, which usually takes in children at the age of 3-plus. "The Directorate of Education had made clear that a child upto five-plus was fit to go to Class 1. This effectively means that whatever schooling done before pre-nursery, nursery and kindergarten is informal. In my opinion, a child should be allowed to go to playschool whenever he is ready even at four-plus if necessary. This new order also means that the 12-month cycle followed in pre-schools will be disrupted parents will send in their kids at two-plus...'' Prashant Verma, from the Grammar School based in Ashok Vihar says.