The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Rs.92 lakh allotted for creating AIDS awareness in schools

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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Rs.92 lakh allotted for creating AIDS awareness in schools

Shastry V. Mallady

Red Ribbon Clubs to be established in all higher secondary schools in State

Each school will get Rs.1,000 for holding contests
Drawing contest will be organised on December 1

MADURAI: The School Education Department has been provided Rs.92 lakh by the Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Society (TANSACS) to carry out awareness activities in all schools through Red Ribbon Clubs.

To implement the programme, the department has asked its officials to make sure that Red Ribbon Clubs were established in all the 9,000-odd high/higher secondary schools.

Talking to The Hindu here on Saturday, P. Perumalsamy, Director of School Education, said that the amount would be utilised to create a strong student awareness network in government, aided and matriculation schools.

To start with, each school will receive Rs.1,000 for conducting competitions and awareness programmes among students. Drawing competitions will be organised at school, district and State levels on the theme ‘youth and HIV” during World AIDS Day on December 1.

Mr. Perumalsamy held a meeting on this issue with the Chief Educational Officers of all districts as part of a two-day State-level review meeting.

He said that the department had asked its district officials to identify slow learners in Government schools from sixth to ninth standard and conduct special classes of 45 minutes duration each in the morning and evening.

The School Education Department was also taking steps to promote the habit of using English dictionary in schools. Support of local donors would be taken to purchase at least five dictionaries for every government school, Mr. Perumalsamy said.

M. Ganesh Kumar, consultant (youth affairs), TANSACS, who made a presentation on HIV-AIDS awareness campaign in schools, said that the Red Ribbon Club activities were part of the School Adolescents Education Programme in the State.

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