Ruling on a petition filed by Shriram and Vasant Valley schools, the SC said the regime should be given a try before any conclusion could be reached on its merits.

``Can a small child be burdened with tests and interviews for entry-level admission?'' the court asked, while upholding the HC order banning such an evaluation process for the 2007-08 session.

Those who want their four-year-olds to get into Shri Ram or Vasant Valley School may have to wait a little longer. On Friday, the Supreme Court rejected the plea of both the schools, challenging the 100-point system prescribed by the Ganguly committee.

The two schools have now decided to wait till the next high court hearing on January 17 before beginning admissions.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice designate K G Balakrishnan and Justice D K Jain was hearing a petition filed by the two private schools.

However, the court granted liberty to the petitioners to approach HC afresh for raising their objections vis-a-vis the panel's recommendations.

``We will see how our objections against two issues 100-point system and considering March 31 as the cut-off date to decide the child's age are heard on January 17.

On January 30, there is another high court (HC) hearing on reservation of 20% seats for weaker sections. We want these issues to be settled before starting the admission process,'' said Manju Bharat Ram, chairperson of Shri Ram School.

Vasant Valley School principal Arun Kapur could not be contacted for comment.

The schools had filed a special leave petition (SPL) challenging the December 8 Delhi High Court order which stated that schools should go ahead with the admission process as per the suggestions laid down by the Ganguly committee.

The petitioners challenged the 100-point system calling it an attempt to take away the autonomy of private schools.

Their petition also stated that schools should be allowed to interview parents.

GANGULY PANEL SUGGESTIONS
Kids will be rated under a 100-point system where 80 points will be decided by factors like neighbourhood, single child, educational qualification of parents, girl child, sibling factor and alumni parents. Schools have 20 points to set their own parameter but these should be disclosed to parents Income of parents should not be asked No interview or interaction with kids Interaction with parents only to verify details Schools should consider March 31 not Sept 30 as the cutoff date for deciding the child's age After screening the forms, a list will be put up in an order of points scored. Admissions will depend on the number of seats Schools to give reasons for rejection

Terming the HC order as an experiment to prevent children and parents being subjected to a harrowing experience, a Bench comprising Justices K G Balakrishnan and D K Jain asked schools to implement the new admission method and report their experience to HC.

The two schools had challenged the HC order on the ground that the court could not frame a law when one already existed to regulate admissions. Appearing for the schools, senior advocates Mukul Rohtagi and C A Sundaram argued that in accordance with the SC's Constitution Bench judgment, private unaided schools have autonomy in selecting students. Existing law also vests power of determining the admission procedure with the principal, they said.