BMC project to identify out-of-school kids remains defunct

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Apart from visiting slum areas and identifying out-of-school children and dropouts and getting them back in school, the group was expected to mediate between civic schools and parents of out-of-school students. The group was responsible for organising meetings of parents, providing counselling and convincing them to send their children to school, as well as keeping a tab on reasons for dropping out of school.

“The members were all experts and had experience in social service. However, gradually they were transferred to other departments. Most of the members were transferred in the last 10 years. Today the project is on the verge of dying and the civic body is tightlipped about it,” said Shivnath Darade, member of BMC’s education committee.

Darade has taken up the matter with civic officials. He said, “On the one hand the state government is planning a huge campaign to resolve the issue of out-of-school students, while on the other hand the BMC is failing to save its own project. BMC is planning to start its own pre-primary schools, but the group which is supposed to get children enrolled in these schools has become inactive.”

Snehalata Chavan, BMC’s administrative officer, schools, who took charge as chief officer of the project on July 1, said, “It is true that there are only two of us left, but the project is not dying. It is an important project at this juncture, when the number of out-of-school students is on the rise. The department is planning to fill the vacancies and the project will restart.”

BMC’s education officer Shambhavi Jogi was unavailable for comment.

Darade has, meanwhile, written to the civic authorities to take urgent steps to get new members in the group.