TIRUCHY: In a heartwarming initiative, students of the government high school at Samudrathottam in Manapparai encouraged their parents to confront the dangers of alcohol and tobacco addiction through personal letters. The programme, which began a year and a half ago, has seen around 250 students actively involved in spreading awareness on the ill effects of drugs.
As part of the campaign, the students penned letters to their parents, detailing the impact of their addictions on family life. These letters were handed over to parents, leading to an emotional response. On Independence Day, 15 parents, moved by their children's words, pledged to quit their addictions.
They signed a certificate, committing themselves to the cause of eradicating drug abuse. "When we started receiving inland letters from the post office to encourage letter writing among children, we thought it would be the best way to appeal to parents using alcohol and tobacco.
The results have been visible, with 25 parents vowing to quit, and many remaining clean over the past year and a half," headmaster T Rajasekaran said. Sivakumar, father of a Class 10 student, joined a human rights organisation advocating for alcohol prohibition after reading his son's letter.
Another parent, Meenakshi Sundaram, who had struggled with addiction for 20 years, also made the commitment to quit after receiving a letter from his daughter. "After reading my daughter's letter, I had a change of heart. I had never visited the school before, but recently I went to the school and in front of students and teachers I apologised to my daughter for my past habits," she said.