He was a sixth grade dropout, besides being a mediocre student. But K. Kamaraj was the first to contribute to the expansion of free education in the State during the three consecutive terms he served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 1954 to 1963. While his political predecessor C. Rajagopalachari lost power owing to his controversial insistence on kula kalvi (caste-appropriate education), Kamaraj catered to the aspirations of the masses, making both primary and higher schooling free for everyone.
On the occasion of his birth anniversary, July 15, The Hindu spoke to educationists and political commentators to revisit the contributions made by him in the field of education.
“It was a stroke of genius to have made the Finance and Education Ministries to be under one single Minister, a senior minister C. Subramaniam. So expansion of education did not suffer for want of funds,” recalled leading educationist S.S. Rajagopalan. While the State’s budget hovered around Rs. 100 crore, nearly 30 per cent was allotted to education during his time.
It is well known that Kamaraj encouraged his officials to travel across the State and encourage people to send their children to schools. This resulted in massive enrolment. By 1962, 85 per cent of school students had access to free education.
In 1964, Tamil Nadu became the first State to introduce free education up to Standard XI. Congress leader and Editor of Desiya Murasu , A. Gopanna, explained how Kamaraj decided to introduce the noon-meal scheme in schools. “During his travels, he came across children in villages who reared cattle for a livelihood. When he asked them why they did not go to school, they replied that it wouldn’t fill their stomachs. That is when he decided to make food available for schoolchildren.”
When he realised that feeding school children would cost the exchequer nearly Rs. 1 crore a year, he encouraged common people to donate rice and pulses towards the project.
“It led to a massive people-led educational charity movement across the State,” Mr. Gopanna said. Later, Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran further expanded the scope and reach of the scheme.
Historian A.R. Venkatachalapathy, a faculty member at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, regretted that there was a dearth of extensive documentation of his life or work. “What you mostly have are impressionistic accounts,” he said. Wrong political moves like opting to contest elections from Nagercoil, forming an alliance with Rajaji, and appointing an unpopular politician M. Bhaktavatsalam his political successor and the later decimation of the Congress from the mainstream of the State politics for the past 50 years have resulted in his invisibility.
Pazha Nedumaran, former TNCC member and Editor of Then Seidi , narrated a touching anecdote. “When his mother Sivakami was unwell, I travelled with him to his home at Virudhunagar to visit her. She insisted that he eat at home but since he had work to attend to, he left for Madurai, saying he would eat at work. A few days later his mother passed away, and Kamarajar told me he had not eaten home food for 30 years.”
The story sums up the life of a man who gave up the simple pleasures of home food, while ensuring children across schools were fed.
