Students, parents stage protest demanding new school building in Nagapattinam

Students of the Government Higher Secondary School in Samandhanpettai, a fishing village near Nagapattinam, boycotted classes on Monday and staged a dharna demanding the construction of a dedicated building for their school. Parents and members of the local fishing community joined the protest.

The Higher Secondary School currently shares its campus with the Government Primary School. With 127 students in the higher secondary section and 62 in the primary, a shortage of classrooms has forced senior students to attend classes outdoors. Protesters highlighted the absence of smart classrooms, a playground, and adequate drinking water facilities.

Parents said repeated appeals to the School Education Department, the District Collector, and the Minister concerned had gone unanswered, despite land being available nearby for expansion.

Nagapattinam tahsildar Neelayadatchi and Chief Educational Officer (in-charge) Ravichandran held talks with the agitators. Hundreds of fishermen stayed away from work and over 250 boats remained docked along the shore as a show of solidarity for the protest.