KANNUR: All roads now seem to lead to ‘Anandam’ house in Champad, near Panoor, placing the area, on the outskirts of Thalassery, on the national map. A police team, led by city commissioner Ajith Kumar, visited the residence a couple of days ago and officers have been assigned for its protection. The district administration has also been in and out of the area, making arrangements.
The special treatment is set to extend till May 22, when the country’s Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar has scheduled a visit to pay respects to his former teacher Rathna Nair, who lives there with her brother Vishwanath Nair.
Rathna taught at Chittorgarh Sainik School, in Rajasthan, from 1962 to 1992, and Dhankar, who joined the school in 1968, was one of her students. “Jagdeep joined us in Class 6 and struggled a bit with English during his early days. But, through hard work and commitment he mastered not only English but other subjects as well,” recounts Rathna. “I also taught Kuldeep, his elder brother,” says the 83-year-old.
“It was a residential school and students spend nine months of a year with teachers, which creates a long-lasting bond between them. Of the many teachers who had served during that period, only me and Harbhal Singh, of Rajasthan, remain. I had provided my mobile number to Jagdeep and he contacted me when he assumed the office of governor of West Bengal,” she said. Dhankhar called again, to invite Rathna to his swearing-in as VP. But, due to health problems, she was unable to travel to New Delhi.
‘Jagdeep was an excellent student’
“Harbhal attended the event,” she says. “Teachers take great pleasure in seeing their students do well in life. Jagdeep was an excellent student who also excelled in sports, including cricket and volleyball,” says Rathna.
Unmarried, Rathna returned to her home state in 1992, and went on to serve as principal of the Chendayad Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya. Rathna’s late father, Ananthan Nair, was stationed in Rajasthan as a hawildar with the Indian Army.
The special naval aircraft flying the Vice President is scheduled to land at Kannur airport at 1.05 pm. He will then travel to Champad by road. After the visit, he will return to Kannur airport at 2.25 pm and fly to the Indian Naval Academy at Ezhimala. He will fly back to New Delhi from Kannur at 6.20 pm.