MUMBAI: Driven by a surging demand for global-standard schooling – particularly the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum — the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) is set for a major K-12 infrastructure expansion over the next two years. At least six established brands and new entrants, including real estate companies, are planning expansive new campuses, modern buildings and upgraded facilities.
“We were fortunate to get land near our current location. Real estate developer Runwal Realty plans to develop three schools in Mulund, Chembur and Thane, and foundation work for its first campus in Chembur has already started. These schools, offering a non-state board curriculum, are scheduled to open in 2028-29. The school will also have a large playground spread across more than 12,000 sq ft.
Jairaj C Thacker, the managing trustee of the school, said the management decided to expand after seeing the growing demand for the IB curriculum among parents. We envisage a new campus building in the future to accommodate more students and provide better facilities,” he said. Francis Joseph, India CEO of GEMS Education, said the group is constructing schools with local players in Malad, Goregaon, Thane and Kalyan. Saurabh Runwal, of Runwal Realty, said, the Chembur school will function from an eight-storey building and offer the IB programme. “The campus is being planned with modern learning technology, sports facilities and spaces for different student activities – learning will not be limited to only classrooms.”
It will also introduce Cambridge A Level (classes 11 and 12) at the Parel campus. At present, the school offers the IGCSE curriculum (till class 10) and the IB Diploma programme. Working on similar lines, the Jamnabai Narsee International School has budgeted around ₹ 800 crore to build a new campus on a 2.36-acre plot in Juhu. The school on the new campus is expected to offer the IB programme from kindergarten to class 12, with planned facilities that include modern academic blocks, science and learning hubs, indoor and outdoor sports facilities, performing arts spaces and areas for student activities. The growing interest of real estate developers in school infrastructure is also reflected in a recent report by real estate consultant CBRE, which estimates that private unaided K-12 schools in India will require around 0.9 billion sq ft of additional infrastructure. Kanakia and Oberoi operate their own schools, the CBRE report has attributed the expansion of schools and higher education institutions to the growing demand for quality education, population growth and policy changes, including the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 While players such as Hiranandani.
JBCN International School’s Parel campus is adding four floors to accommodate new facilities, including technology-enabled classrooms, advanced science laboratories, a large auditorium, a café-style collaborative lounge and dedicated spaces for sports and physical development. The new building will follow the design ideas used at Nita Mukesh Ambani Junior School (NMAJS), also in BKC, with flexible learning spaces that encourage teamwork, creativity, innovation and student participation.
