About 20 student representatives from G Ariyur Government Higher Secondary School travelled nearly 50 km to meet and request the Villupuram district collector to shift or shut down two TASMAC outlets located near seven educational institutions at G Ariyur village.
According to the students, G Ariyur is situated near Ulundurpet - Thirukovilur road- and is a major junction catering to more than 5,000 families from 20 surrounding villages. According to A Senthil, a class XII student, the daily situation grew worse six months ago after a TASMAC outlet opened just few metres away from his school campus.
Students, especially girls, also experienced severe discomfort over the torment by tipplers from another booze outlet that had opened close to a government B.Ed college here. "Drunkards apart from drinking near the school compound wall shades, also throw empty bottles inside the school premises," Senthil said.
S Viji, another class XII student, lamented over the increased incidents of chain-snatching and burglary on the rise in nearby villages. The village has been an education hub, which serves more than 1,500 students from 30 surrounding villages.
Major institutes in the region include G Ariyur Government Higher Secondary School, Government A V Narayanaswamy Chettiyar Higher Secondary School , G Ariyur Government Model School, Government Teacher Training Institute, Government Residential HSS for Girls, a private primary school and an anganvadi for kids.
The students petitioned the collector and requested him to either relocate the outlets to some isolated spots or completely close down them at the earliest. Collector Dr L Subramanian assured the students of needful action and directed the Villupuram TASMAC District Manager to submit to him a detailed report of the outlets in the region at the earliest.
