The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) has launched a survey to identify children who dropped out from schools in various parts of the district on Wednesday. As per a directive from Collector M. Ravikumar and guidelines from Chief Educational Officer, M. Ramakrishnan, the survey is being carried out.
A team of surveyors led by District Coordinator of Out -of-School Children (SSA) and officials, including Supervisor of Thoothukudi Urban Block, A. Sekar, and Block Coordinator, Muthukumar, joined the survey in coastal hamlets, including Threspuram and Madhavan Nair Colony under the Thoothukudi urban block.
Initially, five children below 10 years of age had been identified as dropouts in these localities, sources said.
As for 2017-18, the dropout identification target of 989 children had been set for Thoothukudi district.
To execute this task effectively, the district administration convened a consultative meeting with officials from departments of Social Welfare, Labour, Child Helpline, District Child Protection Unit, Adi Dravidar and Backward Classes Welfare, Police, Pudhu Vazhvu Thittam and voluntary organisations.
Students in the age group of 6-14 years, who discontinued education, should be identified during a door-to-door survey. According to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, all children in this age group must get education.
Around 150 persons, including Block Resource Centre Supervisors, Block Resource Teacher Educators, affiliated to the SSA, special teachers, education volunteers, anganwadi workers, self-help group members, employees of National Child Labour Project and representatives of voluntary organisations had been involved in identifying the dropouts. The survey report would be sent to State Project Office, Chennai, every week, the sources said.
Among the 13 blocks in the district, the prevalence of dropouts would normally be high in Thoothukudi rural, which is followed by Kovilpatti and Vilathikulam.
During 2016-17, 1,023 dropouts, who were identified during a survey from a total of 2,165 habitations, joined the mainstream system of education after being provided education in residential and non–residential special training centres.
The district has a total of three residential special training centres and 34 non-residential special training centres, sources said.
