Infra development in Maharashtra govt schools: Working on alternative plan to raise funds, says minister Dada Bhuse

He was speaking to reporters at Mumbai’s Jai Hind College where he met teaching and non-teaching staff representatives from over 65 associations, where various issues were highlighted, including financial limitations and other factors that hinder infrastructural development in schools.

Bhuse also spoke about his plans to work on government approval to provide electricity to schools on subsidised rates as opposed to current practice of commercial rate. “We will also work on creating solar energy to make schools self-sustainable when it comes to electricity,” he said.

Maharashtra’s pervious school education minister Deepak Kesarkar, too, had encouraged alternative ways of raising funds for infrastructural development of government and aided schools through various schemes such as adoption of schools through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding.

It was also proposed to merge small schools so that better infrastructure can be provided at a single location, instead of limited facilities at individual schools. But both schemes faced criticism from stakeholders. While many educationists raised concerns about adopted schools losing their identity, debates were also held on the number of schools that were likely to close down.