TIRUCHY: Long before coaching centres became an industry, a small room inside Tiruchy’s District Employment and Guidance Office began shaping futures. Twenty-five years on, the Tiruchy study circle continues to quietly guide hundreds of aspirants towards government services. Launched in 2000 with just 10-15 students, the Tiruchy study circle was built on a simple idea: provide serious, disciplined preparation to aspirants who lacked access to costly coaching centres.
Over the years, the initiative has grown into a structured learning space drawing more than 200 aspirants annually, offering free coaching, shared study material and peer-supported mentoring. Over the last quarter century, 1,135 candidates trained at the centre have cleared examinations conducted by the UPSC, the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission and other recruiting bodies.
While rooted in Tiruchy, the study circle has steadily attracted aspirants from neighbouring districts such as Thanjavur and Perambalur. Founder P Suresh Kumar, then Tiruchy district employment officer, recalled that the idea was first experimented within Virudhunagar district and Pudukkottai before being developed into a full-fledged study centre in Tiruchy.
The legacy of the study circle was evident in the experiences shared by its alumni. IAS officer Jacintha Lazarus, currently executive director (South) at the Food Corporation of India, described the study circle as a turning point in her life.
A native of Tiruchy, she said the centre offered a vital alternative at a time when travelling to expensive coaching institutes in Delhi and Chennai was not feasible for many. R Nishatani, IPS, now serving as deputy inspector general of intelligence in Thiruvananthapuram, said, “Extended study hours, access to basic facilities such as desks, cupboards and boards, and encouragement from officials created an environment that fostered discipline and perseverance.”
P Sridharan, additional commissioner of income tax, Madurai, said the study circle shaped not only academic ability but also values, confidence and determination. Labour Secretary K Veera Raghava Rao described the centre a model initiative shaped by the vision of a committed employment officer and later replicated across TN.
District Collector V Saravanan noted that Tiruchy has three knowledge centres with a combined capacity of around 600. He stressed the need for closer coordination among the centres and the study circle to maximise outcomes, improve mentoring and make optimal use of available infrastructure.
