The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Government order "has not benefited students"

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 16, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Government order "has not benefited students"

Special Correspondent

Several tsunami-affected children drop out of school: NGOs

CHENNAI: Government Order 22, issued after the tsunami exempting children in the affected areas from paying school fees, has been observed more in the breach, NGO representatives have said.

Several children have dropped out of school, while others who have managed to get concessions are now being forced to pay up, members of the Campaign for Equity and Equality in Tsunami Rehabilitation (CEETR) said on Wednesday.

"In some cases, NGOs have intervened with the managements of private schools and paid 50 per cent of the fees, but there is a large group of people who have not benefited from this order," said Virgil D'Samy of the CEETR. Apparently the managements of private schools complained that they are not being compensated by the State, and therefore, unable to provide the facility to students. This issue must be addressed immediately and steps taken to extend the concession for one more year, she said.

"Promises not honoured"

Then Pandiyan, co-ordinator, CEETR, said the State had not honoured the promises it had made in respect of tsunami rehabilitation. The key areas affected were housing, coastal conservation, welfare of children and vocational rehabilitation of non-fishing communities. At Kannagi Nagar, for instance, the temporary shelters had been destroyed in a fire, and the families were now without shelters.

To press the State to execute rehabilitation work equitably, fishermen have decided to march from the southern most point, Neerodi in Kanyakumari district, to Pazhaverkadu in the north, from March 17.

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