A National Cadet Corps (NCC) unit was set up at the Eklavya Model Residential School — a tribal school in Nanjanad here on Friday.
This is the first time an NCC unit has been set up at a tribal or Adi Dravidar school anywhere in the State.
The Commanding Officer of the 31 Tamil Nadu Independent NCC Company, MPS Rawat, inaugurated the unit and inducted 25 new cadets into the 1,400 strong corps in The Nilgiris.
Mr. Rawat said that true to the motto of the NCC, children will be taught unity and discipline, which he said would ensure that they develop into model citizens of the country.
“We will impart training and let the children do other adventurous activities at camps where NCC cadets from across the district gather,” he said.
He added that more tribal and Adi Dravidar schools should come forward and volunteer to set up more units.
“The NCC units will help bring isolated communities into the mainstream, and could also help stem school dropout rates,” he said.
The EMRS school, which was started last month, has 68 students on its rolls, of which 25 have joined the NCC.
P. Subramaniam, director of the Tribal Research Center in The Nilgiris, said that it was a historic day for tribal schools in Tamil Nadu, with the inception of the NCC Unit.
“Our hope is that more schools become inspired and set up more units,” he said.
Tribal children from both the Toda and Irular communities performed dances and played music using plastic buckets, and sticks as instruments.
They were then shown a short film made by B. Manivanan, a government arts college professor in Udhagamandalam.
The film, “Punitha” emphasises the need for school children to keep their surroundings clean.
