The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced a substantial budgetary allocation of ₹3,955.64 crore for its education department for the financial year 2025-26. The budget, unveiled as part of the civic body’s broader ‘Vision 2027’ initiative, aims at the holistic development of students in BMC-run schools.
For the first time, the BMC has earmarked funds specifically for financial literacy, cyber literacy, and robotics projects, demonstrating a commitment to modernizing school education in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Right to Education (RTE) Act. The new academic initiatives will be implemented under ‘Mission SAMPURN’ (School Infrastructure, Admission, Merit, Productivity, Universalisation of Education, Responsibility, Nutrition and Health), designed to ensure well-rounded education for civic school students.
Budget Highlights
The education budget for FY2025-26 has increased by ₹457.82 crore compared to the previous year’s ₹3,497.82 crore. However, its share in the overall BMC budget has decreased by 1.07 percentage points. A provision of ₹411.30 crore has been made for capital works, including infrastructure improvements.
Among the major allocations is ₹117.37 crore for the Purak Poshan Aahar (Supplementary Nutrition) scheme, aimed at providing nutritious food to students from pre-primary to Class 10. The scheme will undergo further evaluation, with a committee to be established for food-related recommendations.
First-Time Initiatives in Education
Recognizing the increasing importance of technology and financial knowledge, BMC has introduced new programs to equip students with essential skills:
- Cyber Literacy Initiative (₹23.6 crore): A year-long training program in internet literacy will be provided to students in Classes 8 and 9 to enhance their digital competency and safe online practices.
- Mission Financial Literacy (₹12 crore): Students from Classes 6 to 9 will learn about budgeting, investments, insurance, loans, and interest through interactive teaching methods, including field visits.
- Robotics and STEM Education (₹10 crore): STERM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Robotics, and Mathematics) labs will be set up in civic schools to foster analytical and creative thinking skills among students.
- Gamified Learning App Expansion: A digital learning app will be extended to 32,659 students of Classes 8 and 9.
- Computer Labs (₹7.23 crore): 112 new computer labs will be established across BMC schools.
Challenges and Unpaid Dues
While the BMC has made significant provisions for education, it continues to struggle with financial constraints due to pending dues from the state government. A sum of ₹6,581.08 crore remains unpaid, covering the remuneration of teaching and non-teaching staff in civic schools. The state government is responsible for reimbursing 100% of secondary school salaries and 50% of primary school grants as per existing norms.
Civic Education Statistics
The BMC currently provides free education to 2,60,544 students (1,33,422 boys and 1,27,122 girls) across 938 primary schools, operating in eight different languages—Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu, English, Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada. In secondary education, 191 civic-run schools serve 38,450 students, taught by 1,244 teachers.
BMC officials assert that the latest budget and ‘Mission SAMPURN’ will bring transformative changes to civic schools, ensuring that students receive high-quality, modern, and inclusive education.
