BMC budget 2021-22: No more municipal schools, it will now be only Mumbai Public Schools

Education Committee President Sandhya Doshi receives the education budget from BMC Joint Commissioner Ramesh Pawar at the BMC headquarters on Wednesday. Pic/Bipin Kokate

Civic schools will now be rebranded as Mumbai Public Schools in order to positively influence people's perception. In a first such initiative, there will also be child protection committees for civic schools which will not only create awareness about child rights, but also address violation complaints on the basis of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. As the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday announced its education budget, it presented several such plans for civic schools.

The BMC declared its education budget for 2021-22 as '2,945.78 crore. While several past initiatives will continue, the new plans also include expenditure on providing a safe and clean environment to school children amid the pandemic. Other than opening 10 more CBSE affiliated schools for which '2 crore was allocated, BMC will also focus on strengthening balwadis and providing career counseling to civic school students, for which '21.10 lakh was allocated.

A total of 963 upper primary municipal schools and 224 secondary schools will henceforth be called Mumbai Public Schools (MPS), supplemented by the original school name. A team consisting of BMC representatives, Pratham and Teach for India is currently designing a circular to create redressal committees across schools. "These committees, to be formed at schools, ward and education officer levels, will have members trained in child rights, violation and grievance redressal mechanisms to support students, along with awareness. The POCSO Act will be the basis of these committees," said Mahesh Palkar, education officer at the BMC.

All schools will be provided infrared thermometers, pulse oximeters, soaps/hand wash and masks for students. A '15.90 crore allocation has been done to provide essential healthcare equipment.

DMC mistakes sanitiser for water
Deputy Municipal Commissioner Ramesh Pawar drank hand sanitiser by mistake, while he was on the dais with others to present the education budget 2021-22. Pawar was filling in for Deputy Director of Education Ashutosh Salil, who is unwell. As Pawar arrived on the stage, he grabbed a bottle of hand sanitiser kept in front of him, mistaking it for a bottle of water. He immediately realised his mistake and spat it out.