MBMC lends helping hand to poor students

BHAYANDAR: Finally, there is a ray of hope for children from economically weak families who are forced to drop out from municipal schools in the twin-city due to poverty. To prevent such children from dropping out of school, the recently constituted education committee in the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) led by Jyotsna Hasnale has come out with an ambitious plan of providing Rs 1,000 as monthly assistance to pursue secondary education in private schools. A resolution to this effect was passed on Thursday. Students living in the twin-city who are enrolled in MBMC-run schools for three consecutive will be eligible for recommendations from the civic chief to secure admissions and the monthly scholarship which will be directly paid to the concerned educational institutions. There are 22 MBMC-owned buildings, housing 35 schools which impart primary education (till VII standard) in Marathi, Urdu, Hindi, Gujarati and semi-English mode up to VII standard to a total of around 8,500 students. With no civic secondary schools offering affordable education, hundreds of students who intend to pursue further education after passing out from MBMC-run primary schools every year are forced to drop out when they fail to get admission to the eighth standard in private schools. Such students largely represent the lower economic strata of the society who cannot afford the expensive fees