In a first, the Maharashtra government has introduced a special bus for street children where they can get educational, counselling and daycare facilities in Thane district.
The project – a brainchild of I A Kundan, principal secretary of Maharashtra Women and Child Development (WCD) department was proposed to the Centre last year. The Centre approved the proposal for seven districts in the state
A pilot project was initiated in Thane on February 1 which was formally flagged off this week by district collector Ashok Shingare.
Under the project, buses have been converted into a classroom-cum-clinic that travels across the district to conduct the educational and welfare sessions for street children at designated spots.
The facility will soon be rolled out to other districts, including Mumbai, Pune, Nashik and Nagpur among others.