Cameras would not only ensure the safety of the children, they would also help keep a check on the functioning of the school.
At a time when schools across the country are beefing up their security after the murder of a seven-year-old boy in a Gurgaon school, as many as 1,195 schools under the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have still not installed CCTV cameras on their premises.
Even as the corporation has allocated a budget of Rs 2,311.66 crore for its education department in the academic year 2017-18, installation of CCTV cameras does not seem to be a priority.
Sainath Durge, member of BMC's education committee, recently took up the issue at a committee meeting. "Having CCTV cameras in schools is the need of the hour. Cameras would not only ensure the safety of the children, they would also help keep a check on the functioning of the school. There would be a check on the authorities, which would have a positive effect on their work," he said.
BMC has 417 self-owned school buildings, 227 rented school buildings, and 33 buildings that belong to the estate department.
It also has 24 rent-free school buildings — which brings it to a total of 701 buildings, some of which house multiple schools. Durge said that the failure of the education department to install CCTV cameras, despite several requests in the last few years, shows their apathy towards the issue.
Shubhada Gudekar, chairperson of BMC's Education Committee said that the corporation has initiated a survey to decide on the issue. "We have initiated a survey across all our schools to understand where and how many cameras are needed," she said. "And whether they are needed in the first place. The report is expected to be out in the next two months, after which a decision would be taken. Meanwhile, we have Home Guards and lady attendants in schools to ensure the safety of the students."
A principal of a corporation school in the eastern suburbs pointed out that most BMC schools are located near slum pockets where there is always a threat of unscrupulous elements entering the school premises. "Boundary walls of most schools are not too tall and cannot be manned at all times," she said, adding "CCTV cameras are a must to ensure that the security of the school premises."
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