TIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Divya, a Class IV student of Ooroottambalam LP school near here, is on cloud nine. The reason? Her letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan helped the century-old institution get a much-needed school bus.Divya wrote to the Chief Minister on June 12 in reply to the letter that Pinarayi sent to all school children in the state on the occasion of the LDF Government’s first anniversary.
In her letter, Divya narrated the woes of her school, especially the lack of a school bus. She told the Chief Minister that students were facing huge difficulty in commuting to school. Divya also wrote how she and her friends have started using ink pens instead of ballpoint pens as part of their environment conservation efforts.
Moved by the letter, Pinarayi had told Divya her request would be considered favourably. The Chief Minister then wrote to Attingal MP A Sampath highlighting Divya’s demand. The MP procured a 16-seater bus for the school using his asset development fund.
At a function held on Friday morning, Sampath and Divya jointly flagged off the bus. The MP lauded the efforts of the students in highlighting issues facing the school. Divya and her friends were part of the inaugural run of the bus from the school to Aruvikkara.
The school has a special place in history as the institution was the epicentre of the ‘Kandala agitation’ led by social reformer Ayyankali in 1916 demanding educational rights for Dalits. The denial of admission to a Dalit student named Panchami had triggered the agitation. Panchami’s great-grand-niece Athira Sreejith is currently a student of this institution.