The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) pre-primary schools run by NGOs are a runaway success but primary schools run by their own administration are on the wane. The total number of Balwadis which were 489 in the academic year 2017-18 has now increased to 738 in 2019-20 and number students to have increased from 14,854 to 24,089 in the same timeframe. The BMC, however, has claimed that the increasing Balwadi support is their way of ensuring enrolment for primary.

In collaboration with several non-profit organizations (NGOs), the Municipal Corporation for Greater Mumbai (MCGM) has given a major facelift to the civic body operated 900 balwadis in Mumbai. The latest data demonstrates a nearly 80 percent increase in student strength between September 2018 and October 2019. Girl student enrollments have gone up nearly by 25 percent. But, the existing BMC schools are on the verge of closing down with civic body struggling with surplus teachers. This has raised questions on BMC's own administration where the schools are struggling to get students.