Students of a tribal settlement in Erode unable to go to school for three weeks

24 students from a tribal settlement unable to attend school due to unpaid transport charges and water hindering vehicle movement.

As many as 24 students from the Vilankombai tribal settlement, located within the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR), are unable to attend schools for the last three weeks as the School Education Department is yet to pay the monthly transport charges to the operator of the pickup vehicle that transports students. Also, water in the streams have hindered vehicle movement.

The hamlet with 43 families is situated in the dense forest of T.N. Palayam Forest Range and the hamlet comes under the Kongarpalayam Panchayat in Thookkanaicken Palayam Panchayat Union in Gobichettipalayam taluk. Students attend the Panchayat Union Middle School at Vinobanagar, which is seven kms away, and the Government High School at Kongarpalayam, which is 10 kms away. To reach the schools, students must traverse a 7-k.m. forest road that includes four streams. In the absence of public transportation, parents have refused to send their wards to schools earlier. Under the Samagra Shiksha Scheme, a monthly transport aid of ₹1,300 per student is provided to the schools and paid to the vehicle owner for transporting students to and from their settlement.

Speaking on anonymity, a parent said the vehicle was operated until the completion of the quarterly examinations (September 27) and the service did not resume after school re-opened on October 7. “Students have not attended school in the last three weeks,” he said, citing the vehicle operator’s claim that he had not received the transport charges.

Also, high water levels in the streams during the rainy season further prevented vehicle movement as residents were demanding a motorable road and bridges across the stream. Officials have earlier ruled out constructing bridges due to the high costs involved.

V.P. Gunasekaran, State Committee Member of the Tamil Nadu Tribal People Association, told The Hindu that the education of the students has been severely affected for many years due to the vehicle not being operated for various reasons. He stressed that establishing a primary school in the hamlet is the only permanent solution to the ongoing issue.

S.C. Natraj, Director of Sathyamangalam-based NGO, Service Unit for Development Activities in Rural (SUDAR), said The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (RTE), 2009, mandates the presence of schools for classes I to V within one km of the neighbourhood and within 3 km for classes VI to VIII. “It is the responsibility of the School Education Department to ensure vehicles operate regularly without disruptions,” he said, reiterating the need for a primary school in the hamlet. “Children are transported in a pickup vehicle and get drenched during the rainy season. The Forest Department should operate its vehicle for safe transportation of children,” he stressed.

Chief Educational Officer G. Subbarao told The Hindu that the operator is yet to be settled for the month of September while water in the streams had also impeded vehicle operations, as its wheels would get stuck in the sand. “Vehicle service will resume once water flow recedes,” he said.