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Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- General
- Hindustan Times
Bldg declared unsafe: 18k Colaba BMC school students study online
MUMBAI: For the last fortnight, 1,500 students from the English-medium section of a civic-run school in Colaba have been attending classes online. The shift to virtual learning began after the BMC's School Infrastructure Cell (SIC) declared the two school buildings on the premises unsafe and ordered their demolition. Mumbai, India - Aug. 4, 2025:Colaba Municipal School near Colaba fire brigade at Colaba, in Mumbai, India, on Monday, August 4, 2025. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times) The campus consists of two buildings, housing sections with eight mediums of instruction, including Marathi, Hindi, Kannada, Urdu and English. Together, they have 2,800 students on their rolls. In November 2024, the first notice for demolition was issued. Following this, the principal started shifting students to nearby municipal schools. While students from the Marathi, Hindi, Kannada and Urdu sections were relocated, two English-medium sections with 1,500 students could not be moved. Alternatively, their education has moved online. Parents and activists are demanding that the BMC demolish one building at a time, instead of shutting both. 'One of the buildings has been marked as C2, which means it needs major repairs but isn't dangerous,' said Shivnath Darade, a representative of Shikshak Parishad, the teachers' union. Darade also pointed out that in May, the SIC, responding to a query from the principal, said students could attend classes in that building. So the school resumed offline classes in June. However, in a sudden move at the end of June, the BMC's building department instructed the school to vacate both buildings, declaring them dilapidated. This decision left the English-medium students with no physical classrooms from July 15. A parent of a Class 5 student said, 'We chose this school because the teachers are really good. Both our children study here. But now they're forced to learn online. We are awaiting relocation. There are many open spaces in the area and the BMC should use them.' To find a long-term solution, parents recently met local MLA Rahul Narvekar. 'He assured us that he would take up the matter,' said one parent. Meanwhile, school principals, teachers and local officials have been searching for alternative locations since January 2025, after the initial notice was served. An official shared, 'There were two Marathi, two Hindi, and one each of English, Kannada and Urdu medium schools in the premises. We've managed to shift 830 students from the Marathi, Hindi, Kannada and Urdu sections to the Colaba Market BMC School.' Some older English-medium students from Classes 9 and 10 were moved to the Bora Bazaar municipal school but many parents are unhappy with the conditions there. 'It is overcrowded, and the classrooms are not suitable,' said one parent. Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Education), Prachi Jambhekar, said, 'We are looking at various options. Unfortunately, no welfare centres or amenity spaces are available. The Colaba Market location was the only option, and even that had to be vacated by the election office first. We've moved students there and are now exploring rental spaces. We hope to find more space soon.'
Time of India
6 days ago
- General
- Time of India
Bhandup civic school closure, students forced to walk 3 km due to delayed renovation
Mumbai: The Khindipada Marathi medium school in Bhandup has been closed for over two years, originally for renovation work that has yet to begin. All students were initially transferred to a local hall where all classes were held together. However, as the school building dating back to 1971 remains untouched, the children were later shifted to another Municipal Corporation school in Tulshetpada, about three kilometers away. With no public transportation available during school hours, the students are forced to walk the long distance daily, taking 30 to 40 minutes each way. Local residents noted that although a BEST bus runs on this route, it only operates in the afternoon, making it ineffective for morning commutes. The long and difficult walk has caused several students to leave the municipal system and enroll in private schools instead. Shivnath Darade of the Maharashtra State Teachers Council condemned the situation in a letter to the Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai, stating, "The Khindipada Municipal Marathi school has come to an end due to the negligence of senior officials. A new school building must be constructed and the Khindipada school restarted as soon as possible. " You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai Repeated attempts to reach the BMC education department via phone and messages went unanswered. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Friendship Day wishes , messages and quotes !
Time of India
20-07-2025
- Time of India
Coercion, backdated entries, cooked-up vacancies
Apart from defrauding the exchequer of thousands of crores, the Shalarth scam involved extorting bribes from teachers who were applying for dues and increments or diverting the money to others. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Mumbai-based activist Shivnath Darade says, "Teachers were made to wait for long periods and run from pillar to post for lawful accruals. Money was demanded under the table to speed up the process." Since records of every teacher from a govt or aided school needed to be updated on the portal, many were at the mercy of the staff running it. Anita Miranda, a teacher at an aided school in Mumbai, says she was eligible by 2014 for promotion to teach class 9 and 10 students, but she had to wait for three years for a salary started unofficially teaching class 9 and 10 students the next year. By 2017, after repeated inquiries with the education department, she alleges she was told to sign a letter stating that she had been teaching higher grade students since 2014, after which changes were made to her salary grade on the Shalarth portal, indicating a promotion. But the increased salary never came. Similarly, in a govt school in Thane, backdated entries have allegedly been made for teachers who joined much later than the records show. "A teacher in my school was hired in 2014, but his Shalarth ID shows he has been teaching since 2012," alleges a teacher from the same school. "If a proper investigation is done, there will be many more cases in my school itself." —Mahiyar Patel
