Bicycles will be provided to five per cent of the meritorious students of Class 4 studying in South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) primary schools, the municipal corporation announced on Friday, ahead of the civic polls here.
It said that bicycles will be given to students based on their academic performance in Class 3, out of which a minimum 50 per cent will be girls.
A proposal in this connection was approved in the South Delhi Municipal Corporation’s standing committee meeting on Friday.
“It will increase enrolment in primary classes by alluring the guardians to admit their wards in SDMC schools. It will create a healthy competition among children of Class III to come under 5 per cent of students on the basis of their academic performance. Hence it will help to raise the academic standard of students,” the proposal stated.
According to the proposal, the move is aimed at building health and strength of students along with providing them with the conveyance facility to school and vice versa.
The proposal stated that the move will incur an expenditure of Rs 90 lakh every year on the municipality.
“It has been proposed that the SDMC may provide bicycles to 5 per cent of students of Class IV (out of which minimum 50 % will be girls) of each school on the basis of their academic performance in class III. This scheme will cover 3000 students every year as estimated on the basis of the data of students of the current academic year 2021-22,” the proposal read.
All the three municipalities — North, South and East — are likely to undergo polls before May this year. The poll schedule is yet to be announced.
The civic bodies are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) while Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is the principal opposition there.
The proposal also said that cycling is a pollution-free means of transport for students and it will inculcate a sporting spirit among them.
The SDMC’s education department runs 568 primary schools, 14 independent nursery schools and 10 aided schools. Nearly 3 lakh students get primary and pre-primary education at these municipal schools.
The SDMC also provides to its students free textbooks, note books, stationery items, school bags and cash subsidies on uniforms.
It also provides a girl child incentive of Rs 1000 to each girl student.
