The corporation primary school at Puthur, in Tiruchirappalli, which was among the three educational institutions in the district that were conferred the Best School Award by the state government of Tamil Nadu last month, continues to wait for the smart classrooms that were sanctioned in July 2022 to be set up on the premises at a cost of Rs 33.5 lakh.

Headmistress P Amsavalli says that the school, which was established in 1940, has been in “very bad shape” even before 2020. She points out the student strength to have jumped to about 200 over the next two years from a meagre 18. Owing to space constraints, they closed admissions for the academic year 2022-2023, keeping over a hundred applications pending, she added. She credits the makeover the school underwent in terms of infrastructure with help from private donors for the success.

Teachers speak 
Apart from successful attempts at raising the standards on par with private institutions, like the installation of a library and providing students with electronic tablets to facilitate enhanced learning, the school also has separate teachers for Spoken English, abacus and so on. This has improved learning among students, said S Arul Jyothy Dorathy, a teacher.

K Akila, a parent to a student and a volunteer at the school, said, “After learning about the teaching methods and the learning facilities available here, several parents opt for the school over private ones.”

In July last year, the city corporation sanctioned Rs 33.5 lakh for setting up smart classrooms in the school. Work towards it, however, is yet to start. Pointing to the school having only five classrooms, its authorities urged for more infrastructure in order to even entertain the student enrollment applications they receive.

While admitting to the work for the installation of smart classrooms in the primary school that is yet to begin, a senior corporation official failed to provide reasons for the delay. "We have tentatively fixed Rs 47 lakh towards infrastructure upliftment, but that too is yet to be finalised," the official added.