Schools run by the Chennai Corporation and government-aided schools along the Adyar river face the risk of closure as hundreds of students have been resettled elsewhere.
Most students are from Thideer Nagar, Athuma Nagar, Maduvankarai and Little Mount who have been covered in the resettlement drive along the Adyar river. After demolishing homes of students along Adyar, the Chennai Corporation and the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board have started exploring options for coping with the challenge.
Chennai Corporation, had already planned to merge schools with those nearby. At the Corporation Council meeting, Mayor Saidai Duraisamy had already announced the merger of schools with less than 25 students. 56 schools have been merged between 1999 and 2011. Most of the school buildings that remain closed after the merger have not been used for education purposes as promised by the civic body.
In 2009, the Corporation merged around 30 schools that lacked patronage, sparking protests. The decision was then reversed. The Corporation continues to claim that a total of 284 schools — 122 primary, 92 middle, 38 high and 32 higher secondary schools — are run by the civic body. But some of the schools have reportedly been closed. The number will increase significantly in 2016.
Chennai Corporation will restore 23 schools damaged in the recent floods along the Adyar and Cooum rivers and Buckingham Canal.
Equipment worth Rs. 2.4 crore has been damaged. Restoration work will be completed in the schools in Harinaryanapuram, S.N. Chetty Street, Wall Tax Road, Bunder Garden, Ammaiyammal Street, Koyambedu, Nesapakkam, Jafferkhanpet, Saidapet, West Mambalam, Cartman Street, Mettupalayam, CIT Nagar, Thideer Nagar, Jones Road, Maduvankarai and Taramani.
