Tamil Nadu schooled over classroom seating idea
'Students on the sides will be forced to turn their necks for hours, five days a week. This can lead to 50% of students developing serious neck-related issues, and 15% may face very serious issues,' a neurosurgeon posted on X.
He also warned of visual strain, especially for students who wear glasses, as they would be forced to look through the periphery of their lenses rather than the optic centre, causing further eye discomfort and headaches. The circular issued by the Director of School Education had asked all Chief Educational Officers in every district to ensure the new seating arrangement in all classrooms, taking into account the number of students and the size of the classrooms.
Although the arrangement was supposed to be implemented depending on each classroom's size as per the circular, many pointed out that government and government-aided schools have longer classrooms, unlike the wider rooms needed to accommodate seating arrangements in 'Pa' shape. Moreover, classrooms with a large number of students will face difficulty even with the new arrangement.
The inspiration behind the move came after some schools in Kerala voluntarily adopted similar seating arrangements, inspired by the Malayalam film Sthanarthi Sreekuttan.
Reacting to the proposal, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami slammed the state government of copying ideas from films without any proper study. 'Stop playing with students' health for publicity,' he posted on X. BJP state secretary SG Suryah, too, criticised the move. The director confirmed to TNIE that the circular has been put on hold. 'After health concerns were raised, we are currently discussing whether to implement it. A final decision will be taken after detailed discussions next week,' he said.
(With inputs from Subashini Vijayakumar)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
18 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
Opposition questions EC's ‘hurry' to begin nationwide voter rolls revision
Opposition leaders have criticised the Election Commission after reports said it has decided to direct chief electoral officers of all states to begin preparing for a special intensive revision of electoral rolls on the lines of the exercise being conducted in Bihar. The commission had written to all state polling chiefs on July 5, directing them to complete ' pre-revision activities ', The Indian Express reported on Sunday. The activities include rationalisation of polling stations, filling vacant positions of key officials and supervisors who will carry out the enumeration, and conducting training, the newspaper reported. The Opposition said on Sunday that the poll panel should wait for the Supreme Court to decide on the challenges to the voter roll revision taking place in Bihar before replicating the exercise in other states. On Thursday, the Supreme Court urged the Election Commission to consider Aadhaar cards, voter ID cards and ration cards as valid documents for the revision of electoral rolls. The court will hear the case further on July 28. Commenting on the commission's decision to prepare for a nationwide voter roll revision, Congress leader KC Venugopal said that the Bharatiya Janata Party had 'mastered the art of taking a bad idea and making it worse '. 'As if the chaos and opposition to the Bihar SIR was not enough, the BJP-controlled ECI now wants to subject the entire country through this trauma,' Venugopal said on social media. 'Every Indian citizen will be looked at with suspicion, their voting rights will be under threat, and the whole electoral system will be rigged.' The Election Commission must shelve proposals seeking a nationwide voter roll revision immediately, said the Congress leader. Rajya Sabha MP Abhishek Singhvi told The Indian Express that the commission's decision was 'effectually meaningless because everything will depend on the outcome of the pending case' in the Supreme Court. In the case before the Supreme Court, Singhvi is representing the petitioners who have challenged the voter roll revision in Bihar. 'Not only on [July] 28, but on a few dates thereafter,' the Congress leader was quoted as saying. 'Depending on that outcome alone, everything else will proceed or not proceed. Merely giving jingoistic statements is meaningless...' Trinamool Congress leader Sagarika Ghose said the poll panel must answer 'if it is preparing a citizen's register' in the name of electoral roll revision, the newspaper reported. '…This is an NRC [National Register of Citizens] from the backdoor,' Ghose was quoted as saying. '…This is a malafide exercise targeting the poorest and most vulnerable,' the Rajya Sabha MP was quoted as saying. Communist Party of India leader D Raja was quoted as saying that the Election Commission must explain why it is in a 'hurry' to carry out a nationwide exercise while the Supreme Court is hearing the matter. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on July 6 defended the exercise, claiming that the exercise had to be carried out as no one was satisfied with the current voter rolls. Revision of voter rolls The revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar was announced by the Election Commission on June 24. As part of the exercise, persons whose names were not on the 2003 voter list will need to submit proof of eligibility to vote. This means that 2.9 crore out of the state's 7.8 crore voters – or about 37% of the electors – will have to submit documentary evidence. Voters born before July 1, 1987, must show proof of their date and place of birth, while those born between July 1, 1987, and December 2, 2004, must also submit documents establishing the date and place of birth of one of their parents. Those born after December 2, 2004, will need proof of date of birth for themselves and both parents. If the officers are satisfied with the details provided, the voters will be re-enrolled to a new voter list by electoral registration officers. If not, they will be removed from the voter lists. About 80.1% electors in Bihar had submitted their enumeration forms as part of the exercise, the Election Commission said on Saturday. A draft roll will be published on August 1 and the final roll will be out on September 30. Bihar is expected to head for Assembly polls in October or November. On July 2, eleven INDIA bloc parties told the Election Commission that the revision of Bihar's electoral rolls risked disenfranchising more than 2.5 crore voters, as they may not be able to produce the necessary documents.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Who is C Sadanandan? Who lost his legs in 1994 political violence; now nominated to Rajya Sabha
NEW DELHI: President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday nominated C Sadanandan, Kerala BJP vice-president and a survivor of brutal political violence in Kannur, to the Rajya Sabha. Who is C Sadanandan Master? The 61-year-old retired teacher hails from Parinchery in Kannur, a region long marked by political clashes. Sadanandan is married to Vanitha Rani, a retired teacher, and they have a daughter, Yamunabharathi S. Sadanandan lost both his legs in 1994, when he was the RSS sarkaryavahak of Kannur, in a brutal attack by alleged CPM cadres. The assault, which occurred in Uravachal village on the night of January 25, 1994, involved assailants pinning him down and hacking off both legs, which were later found discarded nearby. Though police arrived and rushed him to the hospital, his legs could not be reattached due to lack of facilities. At the time, Sadanandan was a teacher at Kuzhikkal LP School. Despite the horrific attack, Sadanandan continued his association with RSS and BJP, walking with the help of prosthetic legs. He went on to contest elections from Koothuparamba Assembly constituency in 2016 and 2021 as a BJP candidate. Sadanandan had initially been aligned with the SFI, the student wing of the CPM, before joining the RSS in 1984. He later held several key Sangh roles including Sarkaryavah of Kannur district, Baudhik Pramukh of Kozhikode and Thrissur Mahanagar, and Vibhag Baudhik Pramukh of Ernakulam. After the attack, he resumed teaching at Sri Durga Vilasam HSS in Peramangalam, Thrissur, and retired in April 2020. He also served as state president of Deseeya Adhyapaka Parishad, an RSS-affiliated teachers' organization. 'Epitome of courage': PM Narendra Modi praises Sadanandan Reacting to the Rajya Sabha nomination, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Sadanandan, calling his life 'the epitome of courage and refusal to bow to injustice.' In a post on X, Modi added, 'Violence and intimidation couldn't deter his spirit towards national development. His efforts as a teacher and social worker are commendable.' Sadanandan, in his response, expressed happiness and said the nomination was a step towards strengthening BJP's efforts in Kerala. He refrained from framing the decision as retaliation against political violence, instead calling for peace. 'Let us view those days as a nightmare and forget it. Several party workers like me were maimed and many mothers and widows lost their dear ones. We worked hard to end the culture of 'eye for an eye'. There is now peace in Kannur, and I want it to continue,' he said. His nomination is seen as a symbolic recognition of political violence survivors and an attempt to bring the issue of Kannur's decades-long political bloodshed to the national stage, while also energizing the BJP cadre in Kerala.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Jai Ram Thakur on Mandi floods: ‘Apple crop is gone… No cultivable land is left'
In what seems to be a rerun of 2023, the rains have wreaked havoc in Mandi in Himachal Pradesh during the current monsoon, causing large-scale landslides and destruction. One of the worst-affected areas in the district is the Seraj Assembly constituency, which is represented by senior BJP leader and former chief minister Jai Ram Thakur. In an interview with The Indian Express, Thakur, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly, speaks about the devastation, relief operations and the road ahead for the affected areas, among other issues. Excerpts: *What is the damage that the recent tragedy has caused? Its epicentre is my constituency Seraj, which has 78 panchayats. Around 45 of them have been badly hit while 600 families have been rendered homeless. They are currently taking refuge in shelter homes, community halls and schools. Around 1,000 houses have been partially damaged. Apart from this, 80% of water lines have been damaged. This alone has led to a loss of approximately Rs 60 crore. Around 30,000 people are living without normal water supply. A 9-km water supply line has also been washed away in my native village of Tandi. With regard to the (damaged) road network, a 60-km road from Chail Chowk to Janjehli – seen as a lifeline – has caused a loss of Rs 300 crore. This is not even including link roads. If we include that, the losses would shoot up. A total of 18 bridges have also been washed away. In areas like Thunag, Bagsiad and Janjehli, there is no power supply and internet for the past 14 days. The total loss is anything between Rs 800 and Rs 1,000 crore. *You mentioned your native village. Did you suffer any personal loss? My ancestral house has borne the brunt of it. The structure has been partially damaged, a portion of the courtyard has been washed away, and toilets and cowsheds have been washed away. Two of my brothers' houses have been partially damaged. Apart from this, 200 apple trees were also destroyed. I had to walk as the link road had been washed away. *You spoke of apple plants… There was flourishing horticulture here. The apple crop was good this time with many people growing 200-300 trees on an average. Nothing is left now. Also, our estimates show 700 animals and 600 cowsheds have been washed away. Around 1,000 polyhouses with flowers of 15 varieties have been destroyed. In a nutshell, there is no cultivable land left under our feet now. *Why do you think Mandi faces floods repeatedly? It is something unfortunate and needs to be studied. In 2023, it was Mandi and Kullu in the middle of monsoon. But this time, it happened on June 30 in the midst of pre-monsoon showers. Soil has been eroded from as high as 12,000-13,000 feet. Every nullah has received 10 times more water than usual. *Has it caused any human casualties? A total of 42 lives have been lost in Mandi district, including 29 in Seraj, nine in Nachan and three in Karsog. *How are the relief operations going? Earlier, relief materials were sent to cut-off areas only through helicopters. Now, roads have been restored to some extent but many areas still exist where relief is being sent on mules. Ration kits and essential items are being sent from all other Assembly constituencies on the BJP's call. These are 10 times more than the state government's relief. *You seem to be out on the ground daily… I have travelled more than 125 km on foot since July 1. (Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh) Sukhu ji came only nine days after the tragedy struck. *The BJP's Mandi MP Kangana Ranaut also visited the affected areas. She visited and went back. She has promised to sanction new projects with her MPLADS funds and take up the issue at the central level. *The Congress has alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences for the flood in Texas, USA, but did not speak of the situation in Mandi. This is not true. I have spoken to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and will speak to PM Modi in Delhi. He is very helpful. *You said you would accompany CM Sukhu to Delhi… I will do whatever is in the people's interest. I will go with the CM to Delhi to seek aid (from the Centre). Rehabilitation and restoration are going to be an uphill task (in Himachal Pradesh). As an MLA, I will do everything in my power. *What steps do you think need to be taken so that such a tragedy does not recur in Himachal Pradesh? I discussed this issue with (BJP national president) J P Nadda a few days ago. We need to conduct a study. Earlier, houses on river banks were at risk but now even those located far away are in danger. Forests have been washed away. It is a strange phenomenon.
