The Hindu, in keeping with its value system of building an egalitarian society with equal access to knowledge, has launched its school edition, The Hindu In School , at 50 government schools in the district, thanks to the support extended by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) under its Corporate Social Responsibility initiative.
HPCL chief regional manager G. Vinod Kumar inaugurated the scheme for this academic year by handing over copies of The Hindu In School to the Principal and students of Pius Girls High School at Edappally on Wednesday.
Talking on the occasion, Mr. Kumar urged students to evolve into good human beings no matter what career they chose in the future. He expressed the hope that the school would inculcate in them the values needed to achieve that goal.
Recollecting the long-standing relationship between The Hindu and HPCL, Mr. Kumar said that almost all successful persons in various fields were regular readers of the newspaper. “ The Hindu is rich in literature, vocabulary and values and shuns sensationalism in reporting news. Compare this newspaper with any other newspaper and the difference will be very much evident,” Mr. Kumar said.
He urged students to reduce the time spent on watching television and to become friends with books and requested them to make optimum use of The Hindu in School and to assimilate the knowledge and values it offers, which would stand them in good stead in their quest to form a solid foundation to become good citizens.
In her welcome address, school Principal Gilly P. Geo said that reading newspapers was an essential part of modern life since it not only helped gather information but also improved linguistic proficiency, reading skills and vocabulary. “Reading The Hindu will benefit students who go outside Kerala for higher studies as they will have to rely on English as the language for communication,” Ms. Geo said.
K.G. Girish, deputy manager (sales), HPCL, Kochi Retail Regional Office; Aboobacker Naina C.A., senior COMCO Officer; Meher Yerramilli, senior general manager, circulation, The Hindu ; N.V. Balamurali, deputy regional manager; and Sandhya Varma, assistant regional manager, were among those present. K.M. Pradeep, assistant regional manager, proposed a vote of thanks.
