Residents block key stretch, demand new classrooms at Government Primary School near Ambur

Residents, students, parents and teachers at Panchayat Union Primary School in Ramachandrapuram village near Ambur town in Tirupattur blocked Ambur-Pernambut Main Road and demanded construction of new classrooms.

Residents said that the school had three buildings within its spacious three-acre campus in Ramachandrapuram village in Tirupattur. The school has around 120 students. “Students have to attend classes under trees after the demolition of the old school building on the campus. Safety of students remains a concern for parents and teachers, especially during monsoon,” said K. Saraswathi, principal of the school.

School authorities said that the old building was demolished over a year ago as part of the State government’s decision to raze old school buildings to ensure safety of students. The move came in the wake of the death of three students due to the collapse of a toilet wall in a government-aided school in Tirunelveli in December 2021. In Tirupattur, 265 old school buildings were identified. Most of the old buildings were not being used as classrooms but as storage rooms.

However, here, the demolished old building was used as classrooms for classes IV and V. After the demolition, the classes for these students took place under trees. Many students complained of itching and knee pain.

Along with the school authorities, office bearers of Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) have been campaigning for a new school building before the onset of northeast monsoon. As there was no progress on their request, residents blocked the key stretch near Ambur town.

Based on orders of Collector K. Tharpagaraj, Umarabad police, education and revenue officials led by S. Revathi, and Tirupattur tasildar rushed to the spot and pacified the agitated residents.

Block Development Officer (BDO), Madhanur, S. Manavalan told The Hindu that the DRDA had sent a proposal to School Education Department for the new building in the campus at a cost of ₹36 lakh under Child Friendly School Infrastructure Development Scheme (CFSIDS) a few months ago.

“No school buildings in the district for this year have been sanctioned by the School Education Department. We are exploring building the new school building under a special scheme after getting a nod from the Collector,” Mr. Manavalan said.

Published - October 30, 2024 10:53 pm IST