Road eats into school space

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Students of the Government Adi Dravidar Welfare High School on East Coast Road, Palavakkam have a tough time.

The close proximity of the school to the main road makes it difficult for students to hear their teachers even though the latter teach at the top of their voices. Apart from noise and air pollution, students suffer for being packed into classrooms like sardines.

“We’re not able to listen to our teachers. It’s been like this for a number of years,” said the students who do not playground. They end up playing in a very tiny space between the main road and the classrooms as there is no compound wall.

Though the staff refused to speak, Chennai Corporation Ward No 185 Councillor Mr D. Viswanathan said that the school started in 1939 and was upgraded as high school in 1994.

“As part of widening of the East Coast Road in 2002, the school gave up 20 feet. Now the National Highways Department has marked another 30 feet,” said the councillor, adding that he had suggested at a zonal officers’ meet held recently to shift the school to the nearby Chennai Corporation grounds that housed the EB office, post office, V.A.O. office and councillor’s office.

“All the four offices can be shifted there so that students will have spacious classrooms and playground. We hope the Corporation takes this proposal and shifts the school,” added Mr Viswanathan, also an alumnus of the school.

While Classes I to V function at a nearby community hall, Class VI to X, with 588 students, function at the present building. “The school has just nine classrooms and each class has two sections,” informed the councillor.