A child’s ability is not decided by the kind of school building they enter. Yet resources, support, and exposure often are.
That is why the Fazlani Aishabai & Haji Abdul Latif Charitable Trust’s work with MCGM schools matters so deeply.
Since 1998, the Trust has supported municipal schools in partnership with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai. The purpose is straightforward and serious: to improve the quality of education available to children from economically underprivileged communities and to help them move through school with stronger academic, personal, and future-ready support.
Why public school support matters
Municipal schools serve children whose families often face daily financial pressure, cramped living conditions, limited educational support at home, and fewer opportunities outside the classroom.
Many students are first-generation learners. Many are capable and motivated. What they often lack is not intelligence, but access.
The Trust’s support helps respond to that gap.
The programme has included:
- qualified teachers funded by the Trust
- support across Urdu, Hindi, Marathi, and English
- teacher development training
- personality development work
- career counselling
- student well-being support
A broader idea of school support
Good educational support is not only about exam scores.
Students also need:
- encouragement to stay in school
- adult guidance when they feel lost
- space to discover strengths beyond academics
- someone to speak honestly about future pathways
Alongside academics, the work includes career guidance, personality development, sports, arts, parent engagement, and attention to emotional well-being.
That matters because many children in under-resourced schools do not only need teaching. They need a stronger ecosystem around learning.
Recognising achievement matters too
Support is one part of the story. Recognition is another.
When students from difficult backgrounds do well, it should be seen. It should be celebrated. Not as a token gesture, but as public proof that ability exists everywhere when children are given the right support.
A felicitation is not only a ceremony. It tells students and families that effort has value, and that academic achievement belongs to them too.
For a public school student, that message can land with real force.
What success can look like
One example shared through the Trust is the story of Aquib Ansari from Meghraj Municipal School. With stronger school support and exposure, his cricketing ability was recognised and he went on to represent the school in an international cricket tournament in Dubai. It is a good reminder that school support is not only about marks. It is also about widening the horizon of what a child thinks is possible.
That kind of outcome does not happen by accident.
It grows in environments where:
- teachers notice potential
- students are encouraged to participate
- schools have stronger support systems
- families see that effort can lead somewhere real
Public education deserves investment
The Trust’s MCGM work is important because it respects public education instead of bypassing it.
Rather than treating municipal schools as lost causes, it invests in them. It works inside them. It supports children where they already are.
That is a meaningful choice.
It says:
- quality education should not depend only on private access
- children from low-income communities deserve strong support
- public systems can improve when they are taken seriously
This is the deeper value of the programme. It is not only helping students pass through school. It is helping restore faith in what school can still be.