Special students set to get Rs 10 per day as attendance allowance

The budgetary estimates for education at Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for the year 2017-18 have gone down by around Rs 83 crore as compared to last year. BMC’s education committee presented a budget worth Rs 2311.66 crore on Wednesday.

While some of the schemes like fixed deposits for girl students, toy libraries for balwadis and introduction of mini-science centres have made a comeback, the corporation announced a few new schemes like attendance allowance and scholarships to students with special needs and the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao project for girl students. At least 850 special students studying in 17 civic schools and 4,095 students with special needs studying in other civic schools, along with their parents, would be given Rs 10 each per day as attendance allowance. Under the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative, the corporation aims to conduct social awareness programmes.

The corporation has allotted a high share of its budgetary allocation (a total provision of Rs 98.18 crore) to the free distribution of educational materials like uniforms, shoes, socks, etc. Following complaints over students getting these items late into the academic year, the BMC has decided to hand these items out on the school reopening day. It has also created a new post of Additional Education Officer to ensure effective functioning of schools.

For the first time, an amount of Rs 31 crore has been allocated for free supply of sports uniforms, which the students would have to wear once a week.