Emphasis on school education: No child to sit on floor

With the allocation of Rs 475 crore to the education sector out of a total expenditure outlay of Rs 1,947 crore, municipal schools in east Delhi may see better days the next financial year.

Unveiling budget proposals for 2013-14, East Delhi Municipal Corporation commissioner S S Yadav announced a number of ambitious projects for improving school education.

Apart from constructing new schools and adding more classrooms to the existing ones, the civic body has proposed to provide computer labs in all schools.

All class 4 and 5 students in muncipal schools will get a computer tablets. The special annual allowance for girl will be hiked.

“Under the Smart Kids project, every school will be provided with one computer lab comprising 20 computers and a trainer for imparting computer education to students,” said Yadav.

“Earlier, we used to give new bags to all students of class 1 every academic season. From the next financial year, we propose to give new bags to students of all classes every year,” he said.

The corporation has decided to increase the annual motivational amount of Rs 200 to Rs 1,000 for girls. The civic body has also earmarked Rs 300 crore for procuring modern furniture for schools.

“The aim is to ensure that not a single child sits on the floor by the end of the next financial year,” said Yadav.

School adoption scheme

The civic agency has introduced a School Adoption Scheme in which big corporate houses will be invited to adopt schools, as part of their corporate social responsibility. 

Officials said the civic agency is already negotiating with some private players who are likely to associate themselves with the corporation.

“There are several models of adoption. Corporates can either adopt the entire school, provide funds for school expenditure or develop infrastructure,” said Yadav.

“We are exploring all the models.”