Delhi Municipal Corporation Schools Face Crisis Due to Lack of Maintenance Fund Payments

Strategic Insights -

The Shikshak Nyay Manch, a union of teachers working in schools run by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), has expressed concerns over the lack of school maintenance fund payments to the schools for the past two academic sessions. As a result, thousands of students have not received money to buy their school uniforms, and teachers have been forced to pay for repair work themselves. The union president, Kuldeep Khatri, stated that every school is supposed to receive between 50,000 to 1.5 lakh rupees for repair and maintenance, but no school has received a single rupee for the past two sessions.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Shikshak Nyay Manch has accused the MCD of not releasing school maintenance fund payments for the past two academic sessions, affecting 15,000 students in 400 schools.
  • Teachers in MCD schools have been paying for repair work themselves, with one teacher paying around 2 lakh rupees out of his own pocket since last year.
  • The uniform subsidy, which is supposed to provide 1,100 rupees per student to buy school uniforms, has also not been sent to students, forcing them to wear old and torn uniforms or not wear uniforms at all.
  • The process of transferring teachers has not begun yet, with some teachers traveling over 50 kilometers to reach their schools and requesting transfers to schools near their homes.
  • The union president, Kuldeep Khatri, has threatened to hold a protest on September 26 if the transfers do not start by September 20.

Statistics:

  • 15,000 students in 400 MCD schools have been affected by the lack of school maintenance fund payments.
  • Teachers in MCD schools have paid around 2 lakh rupees out of their own pocket for repair work since last year.
  • 1,100 rupees is the subsidy per student to buy school uniforms.
  • The Uniform subsidy has not been sent to students for the past two sessions.

Sources:

  • Shikshak Nyay Manch, a union of teachers working in schools run by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD)
  • Kuldeep Khatri, president of the Shikshak Nyay Manch
  • An anonymous teacher from an MCD school in Karol Bagh
  • Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Hindustan Times