Praveen Tyagi, MD, IITian's Pace Academy, will help the BMC school students with IIT entrance exam coaching. Pic/SNEHA SHAH

It's an idea that'll change the fate of BMC school students. BMC Commissioner Jairaj Phatak has decided to help the top 10 SSC students to get coaching for IIT entrance exams for free from this year onwards.

The BMC will pay half of the Rs 2 lakh fee per student that's required for enrollment in IITian's Pace Academy, an IIT entrance coaching class, for a two-year course. The academy will pay the rest of it.

This move will help students like Ramdas Nawale (15) from Mulund Municipal Secondary School who scored 89.7 per cent in his SSC exam. "I have always wanted to pursue engineering, but I knew that it would be impossible for me to get the money for it. Now, I am relieved with this decision," he said.

The civic body also plans to extend hostel and other facilities to help the students concentrate only on their studies. "While speaking to the students, we found that they do not even get proper sanitation and health facilities, which are very essential for healthy learning," said Phatak.

He has also expressed a desire to those BMC students who want to get into the medical or commerce field. "If the coaching fees for them is within Rs 1 lakh, we will definitely help them. We want to create a brand image of BMC schools. When our students will get selected in premium institutes, the world will know what BMC schools are capable of," added Phatak.

Praveen Tyagi, MD, IITian's Pace Academy, feels the only way a poor man can make it big is by education or crime. "Crime is not an option so education is the only way to grow in life," he said. According to him, though BMC students have the ability, they do not have trust themselves. He hopes this move will help change all of that.