BMC allocates ₹2945.78 crore for education in budget for 2021-22

The civic body has set aside an amount of ₹15.90 crore for supplying essential Covid-19 equipment like hand sanitizers, soap, hand wash and others, anticipating the re-opening of schools in the coming days.

The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday announced the allocation of funds for its education budget for the year 2021-22. The budgetary estimates for the year are set at ₹2945.78 crore, which is marginally higher than that of the previous year wherein the budgetary estimates were ₹2944.59 crore.

₹2 crore has been set aside for the opening of 10 new CBSE schools under the civic body. These schools will be housed in existing BMC buildings and will be free of the children of the respective buildings. (Representational Image)

The civic body has set aside an amount of ₹15.90 crore for supplying essential Covid-19 equipment like hand sanitisers, soap, hand wash and others, anticipating the re-opening of schools in the coming days.

It is also working to form a child protection team in order to look at matters with relation to the violation of child rights and similar other grievances. A policy draft for the same is currently underway.

₹2 crore has been set aside for the opening of 10 new CBSE schools under the civic body. These schools will be housed in existing BMC buildings and will be free of the children of the respective buildings.

The budget is set to be presented before the standing committee of the BMC at 2 pm on Wednesday. The introduction of new taxes for the residents of Mumbai is unlikely consideing the coronavirus pandemic but a revision of the property tax, done every five years, is on the cards as per civic officials.

It is also expected that the civic body will prioritise expenditure in key areas like health, education, and infrastructure-related developments.

“Every year, there is an 8% to 10% increase in the budget. Our budget will be larger than last year this year as well, and the capital expenditure will also be more. Moreover, important departments such as health, education, and infrastructure will not see a cut in budgetary allocation or a reduction in the budget outlay in comparison to last year,” said a senior civic officer.

The BMC budget in the ongoing fiscal 2019-2020 was pegged at ₹33,441.02 crores, which was 8.95% more than the previous year’s budget. Budget 2018-19 was pegged at ₹30,692.59 crores.