The Delhi government on Thursday released Rs 400 crore for the development of MCD-run schools. The Delhi government has allocated Rs. 1,700 crores under the grant-in-aid scheme for the MCD schools this year.
Addressing a press conference, Delhi Education Minister Atishi alongwith Delhi Mayor Dr Shelly Oberai said MCD funds have been increased to Rs 1700 crore and today we are releasing Rs 400 crore.” They shared that the Kejriwal government will transformed MCD schools on the lines of Delhi government schools. “Education has always been the priority of the Delhi government. It has always allocated a major chunk of the budget for education. “Our main aim is to make MCD schools better,” Atishi said.
Atishi said that the education system of Delhi has been facing a crisis because government schools that provide education from Class 1-5 come under MCD. “Due to the lack of facilities and a conducive learning environment there, when students from MCD schools are admitted to Delhi government schools they often fall behind. They lack basic foundational skills,” she said.
Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi noted that the AAP dispensation in the city government has always focused on education, following the ideologies of Dr BR Ambedkar.
There are around 1,500 schools within MCD’s jurisdiction, with nearly 9 lakh children and approximately 19,000 teachers. She stated that when they visited the MCD schools, they found that most of the schools were in very poor condition and required major and minor repairs. There are some MCD schools that require the construction of new classrooms, while others could not complete their construction work due to a lack of funds. In such a situation these funds released by the Delhi government will be extremely helpful.
“MCD schools need a lot of development in infrastructure and manpower. To ensure these issues are addressed, the Delhi government has allocated a huge budget to the MCD schools,” she said.