Twenty-one students of P.S.G.R. Krishnammal College for Women, who left for the Himalayas to scale a peak, had a pleasant surprise just before their train pulled out of the Coimbatore Railway Junction on Sunday: Deputy Chief Minister M.K. Stalin came to the station around 2 p.m. to see them off.
The students plan to scale 19,457 feet to reach ‘Hanuman Tibba'.
They were trained and are being guided by mountaineers led by L. Fredrick of Mountaineering Adventure Sports Society (MASS), Coimbatore.
The students had earlier applied for financial help to Mr. Stalin. On receiving their request, he granted Rs.3.77 lakh for the 23-day trip. The funds were arranged through the Coimbatore unit of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, said a release from the district administration.
The students were invited a few days ago to Chennai and were given the cheque at Mr. Stalin's residence. At the railway station here he presented blankets worth Rs.1,000 and also chocolates to each student.
The release said this was the first time that 21 students would embark on scaling the peak together. The students thanked Mr. Stalin for the help and said his support and encouragement would go a long way in helping them scale the peak. The students will reach the summit on June 3.
The students also said that they never expected Mr. Stalin to see them off. His arrival at the station was a pleasant surprise, they said. They promised to do their best to spread the glory of Tamil and Tamils, just as the Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and Mr. Stalin were doing so for the language.
Minister for Rural Industries and Animal Husbandry Pongalur N. Palanisamy, Minister for Highways and Minor Ports M.P. Saminathan and the DMK's Coimbatore urban district secretary Veera Gopal were among those who accompanied Mr. Stalin to the station.
