MUMBAI: From now on, all minor repairs and maintenance of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)-run schools will be assigned to the assistant engineer (AE) maintenance of each ward. The civic body has allotted rs 2 crore for two years for every ward.
The School Infrastructure Cell (SIC) generally looks after repairs and maintenance work of these schools. However, since the education department has invested more funds and attention towards the infrastructure of schools, the workload has increased and so has the pressure on the SIC.
With this move, the idea is to accelerate the work and reduce the SIC’s work. As per the deputy municipal commissioner (education) Milind Sawant, all the works will be under the SIC however, small and minor work will be looked into by AE maintenance.
“Eventually, the SIC will look after everything but we allow ward-level officers to pass tenders and look after repair work,” he said.
As per procedure for repairs laid down by the SIC, the headmaster or headmistress of the school that wants repair work done should write an application to the civic body.
The civic body will pass it in a meeting; float the tender, and then award the contract for the work. This work takes months to complete.
On an earlier occasion, Mahesh Palkar, education officer of BMC, said, “By the time the request is approved and the repair work starts, yet another crack develops in these schools. Hence, to cut this waiting time, it will help if someone nearby starts repair work in case it is of a minor nature.”
Minor repair and maintenance work includes plumbing, filling the cracks, fixing the ceiling or slab, repairing or replacing broken benches or any other items inside the school premises, etc.
If a school needs any such work done, it can write an application to the ward office that will inform the department through AE maintenance. “As soon as we get the request, we will appoint an agency or contractors to look into it,” said Mr Sawant.
