PMC schools to run junior colleges from 2018-19

29/4/2018

PUNE: Starting from the 2018-19 academic year, civic schools will run junior colleges for all the three streams - arts, science and commerce.

The Plus Two classes would be run on self-finance basis, the education board of Pune Municipal Corporation said. The civic body has invited applications from non-profit educational organisations to run the classes.

Deepak Mali, the education officer (secondary and technical) at PMC, said educational institutions willing to run the classes would be provided classrooms in the existing schools. All other expenses would be borne by the organisation running the first-year junior college.

In March, PMC had invited proposals from educational institutions to run classes for Standard XI and XII. PMC currently has 43 schools running classes up to Standard X. “In the first phase, we will identify the schools that require FYJC and based on the demand we will extend the classes,” Mali said.

In some PMC schools, the classes are run from Standard I to VIII, while in others, the classes are run from Standard VIII to X. PMC runs schools in English, Urdu and Marathi mediums and corporators had demanded that the PMC commissioner extended the classes till Standard XII.

Mali said, “The plan is to start classes from the coming academic year for all the three streams. Since there is a lot of investment involved in running the classes and in paying for the salaries of teachers and others, it was not possible to do so with the PMC’s budget. As such, a decision was taken to involve educational institutions to run the classes.”

Educational institutions willing to run FYJC in PMC schools will have to fulfil 15 parameters laid down by PMC to be able to table proposals. The organisations should have a minimum of two years’ experience in running classes from VIII to X and also needs to be financially sound.

PMC would enter into a 10-year contract with the organisation, which will have to make a deposit of Rs 10 lakh with the civic body. The organisation will have to impart free education to students of classes XI and XII and make available facilities such as laboratory, computers, library and internet service.