Student strength plunges 60% in BBMP schools and colleges

BENGALURU: The student strength in BBMP schools and colleges has dropped 60% this year. While 9,467 students have taken admissions to the civic body's educational institutions for 2024-25 till June 6, the number was 24,030 last year, indicating largescale migration from the BBMP institutions.

According to BBMP data, the student strength in high schools in 2024-25 has dipped by 85% from 8,122 to 1,230.

The pre-pandemic student strength in BBMP schools and colleges hovered between 12,000 and 15,000.

BBMP operates 91 nursery schools, 15 primary schools, 32 high schools, 15 PU colleges, four degree colleges, and two post-graduation (PG) colleges in the city.

BBMP officials said the last few years saw a big rise in admissions owing to the economic distress caused by Covid-19. As the economic situation is back to pre-pandemic levels now, parents are taking their children back to private schools, they added.

A BBMP schoolteacher told TOI that parents strive hard to get their children best education. "The recent SSLC exam, where all efforts were made to ensure the integrity of the process, saw a massive fall in passes and grace marks had to be awarded to salvage many careers. Parents want their children to secure good marks in the SSLC examination. They are aware BBMP runs schools without a proper teaching faculty. Therefore, they prefer to enrol their children in private schools," he added.

Report: 19 BBMP school bldgs unsafe
BBMP officials say the number is likely to go up this year as July 31 is the last date for admissions, their hopes could be belied as academic years have begun for schools.

Another section where there is a sharp drop in student enrolment is in BBMP nursery schools. The number of students studying in BBMP nursery schools has drastically decreased compared to last year from 4,963 to 935, a fall of 80%.

A BBMP nursery school collapsed in Bharathi Nagar last year, after which BBMP launched a safety audit of all schools and colleges. The audit report said 19 schools were running in buildings posing a threat of collapsing, and 67 buildings needed immediate attention for repair. BBMP sources admitted the condition of the buildings has significantly impacted parents' concerns about the safety of their kids.