Kochi: Keralam Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Sunday recalled his school days, including sharing lunch with classmates, walking barefoot to school, and even puncturing a bicycle tyre, saying such experiences helped him understand social realities at a young age.

Satheesan was speaking at a felicitation ceremony held at the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School in Panangad here, his alma mater.

Recalling his school days, Satheesan said many students could not afford to bring lunch, but those who brought food would share it with them.

"We all sat together to eat. Those who brought food would take extra for those who couldn't," he said.

Studying alongside children from ordinary and poor families helped him recognise social realities early in life, Satheesan said.

"Otherwise, we all would have ended up living in glass mansions," he said.

He also recalled walking around four to five kilometres from his home to school without slippers, as his family did not consider footwear necessary when other children did not wear them.

He fondly remembered a friend, O G Sunil, who used to cycle to school while the others walked.

Sunil is a businessman in Kochi now.

"We didn't like it very much back then. While we were walking, he was going on a bicycle," Satheesan said.

The envy apparently led to some harmless mischief, with Satheesan recalling how they would sometimes release the air from Sunil's bicycle tyre.

Satheesan also spoke about the games and mischief he and his friends engaged in after school, including plucking mangoes and throwing stones at them.

"I used to throw stones really well. In our group, I was someone who threw stones quite accurately," he said.

He joked that he would aim at the stalk of a mango cluster rather than the mango itself.

"Even today, it's that aim holding me steady in politics," he said.

Recalling the friendships he made during his school days, Satheesan said many of those relationships had continued over the years.

He also recalled how children who could not afford to go to the cinema would listen to friends narrate the entire movie after they returned, with the story often embellished with "extra spice and drama".

As they grew older, the friends began sharing books they read, he said.

Satheesan also urged parents and teachers to allow children enough freedom to play and spend time with friends.

"Children should be allowed to play. We should let them hang out with other friends. We just need to guide them a bit," he said.

Constantly making children study would not help them develop fully, Satheesan said, stressing that children need physical activity and freedom to run, play and jump around.

Addressing the students, he said they should feel free to approach him.

"Look at me like a brother. You will always have the freedom to approach me," he said.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.