Coimbatore forest department arranges e-vehicle to ferry students to school in ATR

COIMBATORE: With schools reopening on June 13, the Coimbatore forest department, with the support from NGOs, has arranged a customised battery-operated vehicle for tribal students at Old Sarkarpathi tribal settlement in Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR).
The department arranged for the e-vehicle to ferry the students from the school to the settlement with the help of philanthropists in the hope of bringing down the student dropout ratio in ATR. Earlier, the settlement witnessed students dropping out of the school as it was located 10 km away, which made the travel inconvenient. Parents of the students were not able to afford autorickshaws because of their meagre income of 300 a day.
Speaking to TOI, ATR deputy director M G Ganesan said, “After interacting with the locals of the Old Sarkarpathi last year, we decided to rectify this learning gap.” With the help of the funds provided by the Rotary Club of Coimbatore, Aakruthi and the Martin Group, who came forward to donate 2.5 lakh, Ganesan said they bought a customised electric vehicle to ferry the students to the school and back home. “With a single charge, the battery-powered vehicle can run up to 60 km and can carry around 12 to 15 students. The vehicle could be used to transport pregnant women or other aged people to the health facility,” he added.
“However, a resolution has been passed to ensure this vehicle cannot be used for commercial purposes. For a few days, a driver from the forest department will operate the vehicle. Later, a youth from the tribal village shall be given the opportunity to man the vehicle,” he said.
The forest department is also looking out for philanthropists to collect funds for implementing a similar initiative in other settlements like Erumaparai, Kozhikamuthi, Chinnarpathi, Nagaroothu-one and Nagarooth. tnn