Gearing up their security measures, Mumbai’s aided, unaided, and self-financed schools have begun ticking off the guidelines presented to them by the state. As per data submitted to the Office of the Divisional Deputy Director of Education, mid-day learned that all 537 schools in the North Zone (Kurla to Mulund), 418 schools in the South Zone (South Mumbai), and 787 schools in the West Zone (Bandra to Dahisar) were inspected by officials in June 2025 to ensure compliance with safety norms.

Inspectors checked for CCTV installations, the presence of complaint boxes and whether complaints were regularly resolved as per government directives, formation of the Sakhi Savitri Committee, character verification before hiring, travel safety measures for students, a code of conduct for visitors, formation of student safety committees, and whether a safety certificate was displayed prominently in the school.

As per the June 2025 data, schools in North Zone achieved a near-perfect score. “The schools in our zone have shown good progress in all areas, and we are still working on aspects such as complaint boxes. The students remain unaware of this facility, and I personally noticed that some boxes remained unused. This is why the schools are ranking low in this area,” said Mustaq Shaikh, education inspector of the North Zone.