Madurai

Complaining about the lack of basic infrastructure at Government-run residential schools for tribals in the State, a public interest litigation petition filed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday sought a direction to set right the sanitation issues plaguing these schools.

The petitioner, G. Pandiyan of Tirunelveli, associated with the Tamil Nadu Tribal People Association, said that in order to ascertain the conditions, he visited the Government Tribal Residential School at Dindigul, where he was taken aback by the lack of basic amenities. The condition at such schools in Theni, Virudhunagar, Kanniyakumari , Tirunelveli and Dindigul was also similar, the petitioner claimed and alleged that in the absence of basic infrastructure teachers were not attending classes regularly.

Apart from bad infrastructure, lack of hostel facility to accommodate children from remote areas went against their Right to Education and sought a direction to the State to provide adequate infrastructure to run the school as well as the hostel and ensure that teaching staff regularly attended to the children.

A Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran and S. S. Sundar ordered notice to the State to ascertain the current infrastructure in the residential schools and adjourned hearing in the case.