TIRUPATTUR: In a remarkable feat, a team of five Class 8 students from Bethlehem Municipal Middle School in Ambur has been featured among the top 1,000 student teams selected under the School Innovation Marathon 2025-26, a national-level competition jointly organised by the Union Ministry of Education, Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), and NITI Aayog.

The competition, which saw the participation of students from government schools, Kendriya Vidyalayas, CBSE schools and private institutions, aims to encourage students to develop innovative solutions for challenges related to technology, social transformation, environmental protection and nation-building, with the vision of a developed India by 2047.

The winning team comprised S Sachin, S Jeevan, C Prithika, V Priyan and Y Arman. Guided by their teacher C Saravanan, they proposed an AI-based attendance system for schools, making Bethlehem Municipal Middle School the only government school from Tirupattur to secure the distinction.

"The project uses AI technology to automate attendance marking. In classrooms with a large number of students, considerable teaching time is spent on taking attendance. Our system aims to complete the process within a few minutes," explained Saravanan, adding that their proposal was submitted online. The students will now be provided with a cash prize to further develop their innovation.

Saravanan further said the achievement demonstrates that government school students can compete successfully at the national level when provided with proper guidance and opportunities.