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BMC takes note of dilapidated civic school buildings, to revise policy
Dilapidated civic school buildings in the city may soon get a makeover, with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) announcing on Wednesday that the review policy of such schools will be revised.
“BMC-run schools are in a dire need of repairs. They have been neglected by the administration for long. Before we lose these structures, we need to re-formulate the policy for the benefit of students,” said BJP corporator Ashish Shelar.
Around 80% of the 1,327 BMC schools in the city are in a dilapidated state. Over 300 have already been shut down because of the crumbling infrastructure. Corporators demanded in the standing committee meeting that the civic body prioritise the issue.
Most of the BMC schools in Khar, Vakola, Mulund and Kurla are in a pathetic state, pointed out corporators in the meeting. Congress corporator Waqarunnisa Ansari said, “The monsoon is about to start in a month. Are we prepared to tackle the wrath of the monsoon? No repairs have taken place yet. A policy to expedite the process is the need of the hour.”
The education committee revealed that a plan is in place to repair 27 school buildings this year. “Efforts are on to complete major repairs before the monsoon. The remaining work is set to complete by the year-end,” said Abasaheb Jadhav, the BMC’s education officer. The corporators demanded that the policy be revised on the basis of allotment of schools. “Civic schools are given on lease to NGOs and other institutions, but they are used for non-educational purpose. Students have to bear the brunt of this,” Ansari said.
Additional municipal commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar said that the administration will take steps to improve the condition of civic schools.
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