Chennai: Even after his death, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam continues to be an inspiration to children in Kannagi Nagar, Thoraipakkam, which used to be notorious for encouraging thugs and drug dealers.
Sujith, 17, who studies in the 12th standard believes he's a changed person after he began attending special classes held by the Abdul Kalam people’s welfare association. “I even wake up and study early in the morning, I have the motivation to do that,”he said.
All students who attend classes here are held responsible for their actions. “On days I do not attend class, they will call my parents and check what the reason was, someone is always looking out for us,”he said. Charulatha, 13, another student says they encourage extracurricular activities like volleyball and yoga, which helps develop other skills too, along with improvements in studies.
E Mariswamy, Founder, Abdul Kalam People's Welfare Association said that earlier, when they started these classes, the local people opposed it. “They questioned our intent and motivation. We approached the local police station to help us. They would even send dropouts to us and we would teach them. Now, everybody sends their children,”he says.
The people living here came in 1998 when only 2,000 houses were there. Now about one lakh people reside in 21,800 households here. The residents are all people affected by the Tsunami or were resettled from encroachments. When these were people moved to Kannagi Nagar, they were very shaken. They didn't have a source of income, neither did they know how to earn. Due to this reason, they resorted to illegal sources of income, drug dealing and rowdy activities. “The image of this area was very bad, so we decided to take up this cause three years back and help them, starting with the youngsters who would be the future”, says Mariswamy.
A total of 300 students now go to these tuitions classes on a daily basis. Special coaching classes in self-defence for women and sports and coaching for boys on weekends are also taken to develop other skills.
The 22 teachers who conduct classes here, however, do not charge for their services. The classes take place for two hours every evening and students are encouraged to ask questions and learn more here. Some students who finished 12th standard with the help of these classes come back to teach and help, Mariswamy says. The Kannagi Nagar
government high school allowed eight classrooms in their building to be used for these classes three years ago.
Nowadays, the children here are complimented for their discipline and hard work, Mariswamy says proudly.
They, however, require more facilities to continue doing good work. A library is required, he says, emphasising the need for the children to read to focus. A community hall to hold bigger events would also be required, he said.
