THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On Sunday morning, for the first time in 64 years, Lt Col S.T.T. Thampi stepped into his alma mater.
When he was a student at the Cotton Hill School, Vazhuthacaud, the British were still ruling India. Six decades have changed a lot of things.
His old school had become an all-girl institution, for one. So, when Thampi arrived for the first-ever reunion organised at the Cotton Hill Girls’ Higher Secondary School on Sunday, he was the only male alumnus present.
“I studied here for four years (1942 to 1945) and those were the most precious days of my life. Those days were fun. I still remember our headmistress Parukutti Amma, who was very strict.’’
Incidentally, Thampi, 73, was the only one from his batch to turn up for the event.
He also was the senior-most present.
Established in 1935, the Cotton Hill School used to allow boys upto Standard IV, a practice which was discontinued in 1967. “I had expected more people from my batch, but nobody has come,’’ Thampi, who was accompanied by his wife, said wistfully.
Among the largest and best government-run schools in the State, Cotton Hill is celebrating its 75th birthday next year, one reason why the PTA organised a reunion. Some of the present students were also seen at the event, receiving warm blessings from their predecessors.
IG (Crimes) R. Sreelekha, an alumna, said that the school has helped a lot in personality development and character formation. “I studied here only for a few years. The teachers here used to encourage us to participate in extra-curricular activities a lot,’’ she said, expressing happiness that a reunion was organised.
Rukmini Ramakrishnan, who taught Malayalam for more than 15 years, recalled a bomb threat which had the school in panic in the 1990s. She expressed joy at seeing so many familiar faces in the crowd. “It was real fun to be with the students. As a teacher, I am proud to see many of my students in very high positions,’’ she said.
The school had plans to organise similar reunions every year, said Vazhuthacaud ward councillor and former student Rakhi Ravikumar, who was one of the organisers. “This was the first. So, we didn’t receive much response from the older batches,’’ she said.
trivandrum@epmltd.com