Drop proposal to shut 85 primary schools in the Nilgiris district, Murugan urges T.N. govt.

Union Minister urges Tamil Nadu to save 85 schools in Nilgiris, emphasizing importance for marginalized students in remote areas.

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan on Friday urged the Tamil Nadu government to drop the proposal to shut 85 government primary schools in the Nilgiris district.

In a statement, Mr. Murugan said it was learned that the State government planned to close nearly 85 primary schools in Gudalur, Coonoor, Kotagiri, and Udhagamandalam areas in the Nilgiris district as these schools each have a student strength of less than 15.

Mr. Murugan pointed out that government schools were the only hope for students who lived in deep forest areas, where transport facilities were limited. “Since the population density of those remote areas are less, the number of students joining those schools are also less. Those schools were started for the welfare of people from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and other marginalised sections of society.”

He sought the intervention of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi in this issue. “The State government should stop playing with the future of students from marginalised communities,” he added.