New Delhi: The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is planning to convert its vacant schools into local dispensaries, community centres, old-age shelters, hostels, guesthouse, for parking or other commercial purposes.

MCD has claimed that there 9 school premises which have been lying vacant for the last two years after the merger of two or three schools. On the contrary, there are many schools which have been running in tents without any basic facilities.

According to estimations, the civic body will earn Rs.500 crores from this project. The proposal has not yet been approved by MCD commissioner K.S. Mishra

"We hope to begin work on this project by the end of this year so that it can be completed by Commonwealth Games 2010, especially as many of the plots are perfect to develop guesthouses, which are required before the games. The project will be made on "Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis", an MCD official said,

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India has strongly opposed the MCD's reported move to allow the commercial use of its school buildings, saying that instead of collaborating with some private lobby, the MCD should ensure that its schools fulfill the needs of the weaker sections of society.