Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation unveils 'Mission SAMPURN' for holistic development of students in civic schools

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has introduced 'Vision 2027' to ensure the overall development of students in its schools.

In his budget address on Feb 4, BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani outlined the ‘SAMPURN’ program, which stands for School Infrastructure, Admission, Merit, Productivity, Universalization of Education, Responsibility, and Nutrition and Health.

‘Mission SAMPURN’ will be rolled out in the 2025-26 academic year, aiming to provide holistic development to students in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Right to Education (RTE) Act.

To support this initiative, the BMC has allocated ₹3,955.64 crore to the education department for FY2025-26, a significant increase from ₹3,497.82 crore in 2024-25.

However, the proportion of the education budget in the overall BMC budget has dropped by 1.07 percentage points.

This year, ₹411.30 crore has been earmarked for capital works.

Among the new provisions, the BMC introduced the Purak Poshan Aahar (Supplementary Nutrition) scheme for students from pre-primary to Class 10 in BMC schools, with ₹117.37 crore allocated for primary and secondary sections.

Rajesh Kankal, the education officer, said that a committee would soon be established to review and recommend food options for students.

Additionally, the BMC is investing ₹23.6 crore in cyber literacy for students in Classes 8 and 9, aiming to equip them with the skills needed to use the internet for educational purposes.

A year-long training course, developed in collaboration with experts, will be provided in all civic schools.

The education department has also allocated ₹12 crore for ‘Mission Financial Literacy,’ a new initiative for Classes 6 to 9, to teach students key concepts like budgeting, investment, insurance, loans, and interest through interactive learning.

In an effort to promote STEM education, the BMC has set aside ₹10 crore for robotics projects under the STERM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Robotics) initiative, with plans to establish labs that foster analytical and creative thinking.

The budget also includes funding for expanding existing programs, such as a gamified learning app for 32,659 students in Classes 8 and 9, and ₹7.23 crore for building 112 new computer labs.

Additionally, the BMC is dealing with ₹6,581.08 crore in dues owed by the state government, which includes remuneration for teaching and non-teaching staff in BMC schools.

As per government norms, the state reimburses the full salary expenditure for staff at 49 aided BMC schools and half of the primary school grants.