Mumbai: We need civic-run CBSE schools too, say Deonar residents

The regular Shivaji Nagar municipal school in Govandi

Rawwab Shaikh, a cab driver who resides at Kamla Raman Nagar opposite the Deonar dumping ground in Govandi, has always hoped his daughter Zunaira, 2, would one day attend a Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) school. However, there is no civic-run CBSE or state-board English-medium school in the area. The nearest Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation-run CBSE school is located at Chembur - about 5 km away - but its administration denied admission to the girl as her family lives more than a kilometre from the school premises.

Shaikh, who also has another young daughter, Anayza, told mid-day, "I was born here. I studied in an Urdu-medium school. Now the times have changed. It was my dream that Zunaira should study at a CBSE school. I earn around R25,000 per month. I can't afford private school fees. I applied to the civic-run Aziz Baugh CBSE school at Chembur. The administration rejected the application. When we sent an email asking the authorities why they had rejected the form, they replied that it was because we don't reside one kilometre from the school."

Rawwab Shaikh and his daughters Anayza and Zunaira (in pink) at Kamla Raman Nagar in Govandi. Pics/Anurag Ahire

According to a circular from the BMC's education department, which was issued on January 18, 2023, "Priority should be given to students living within (a radius of) one kilometre from the school. After giving priority to such students, admission will be determined via the prevailing lottery system for vacant seats. If the permanent residence of the family is outside Mumbai, the one-kilometre condition does not apply."

A local social activist, Faiyaz Alam Shaikh, said, "This family has its permanent residence in Uttar Pradesh. After the girl didn't get admission, we had to email the school authorities. They replied that the form was for those living within a one-kilometre peripheral area. There are two civic schools within a kilometre from our area but there are no CBSE-affiliated schools or civic-run English-medium schools."

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"The authorities should think about our kids. They should start a CBSE or at least English-medium school here too," he added.

An education department official said seats are extremely limited in CBSE schools but there are a large number of applications.

"Priority is given to those residing within a kilometre of the school, then two and then three. Hardly any seats are vacant after the first round. We are thinking of increasing the number of CBSE schools," he said.

According to the BMC's data, there more than 100 civic-run English schools, 11 CBSE schools and one Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and International Baccalaureate (IB) school each. In every BMC-run CBSE school, there are 40 seats. Of these, 10 per cent are filled on the recommendation of the mayor while 5 per cent are reserved for civic employees' kids. Only 34 seats in every such school are open to the public.

Deputy Municipal Commissioner Keshav Ubale said, "As per the Right To Education Act, the distance between schools and students' houses has been decided. If an English-medium school is to be started in that area, we need to check the feasibility."

100
No of civic-run English-medium schools in city