T.N. government to expand cool roof initiative to 297 green schools: CM Stalin

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Wednesday (December 17, 2025) said that the State government will expand the cool roof initiative to 297 green schools across the State, and the one-day summer and winter special environmental awareness camps for schoolchildren will now be conducted as two-day camps.

Addressing the third meeting of the Tamil Nadu Governing Council on Climate Change at the Secretariat in Chennai, Mr. Stalin recalled the impact of Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka and said the world is witnessing the effects of climate change. Due to various precautionary measures taken by the Tamil Nadu government, the State averted large-scale damage, he said.

Listing various initiatives taken by his government over the past three years, including the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission, the Tamil Nadu Climate Change Mission, and the Tamil Nadu Coastal Restoration Mission (TN-SHORE), Mr. Stalin said the State today stands as an example in taking pioneering initiatives to mitigate the impact of climate change.

Under the climate literacy initiative, a total of 4,000 teachers have been selected and programmes will commence soon, he said. To create environmental awareness among schoolchildren, the State government had already initiated one-day summer and winter special camps, conducted twice a year through the District Climate Change Mission. This initiative is now set to be expanded into two-day camps through the School Education Department.

He said the cool roof initiative has been included in the 2025-26 action plan of the Tamil Nadu Climate Change Mission. Under this initiative, classrooms of a government school in Ambattur have been coated with heat-reflective white paint. Monitoring using sensors has shown a reduction in indoor temperature ranging from 1.5 to 3 degrees Celsius. Following this, the State government has planned to implement the initiative in 297 green schools across Tamil Nadu.

Climate and gender

Mr. Stalin also highlighted the measures taken by the State government to transform Killai near Pichavaram in Cuddalore district under the climate resilient village programme. He said the mangrove cover in Tamil Nadu has increased from 4,500 hectares to 9,000 hectares.

Research shows that women and girl children are among those most affected by natural disasters worldwide, he said, urging officials to ensure gender equality while formulating climate mitigation and adaptation measures. Women play an important role in combating climate change. Under the climate warriors programme, 100 e-autorickshaws have been provided to 100 women self-help groups to carry out awareness campaigns on climate change and plastic elimination, he said.

He said the transport sector’s share of Tamil Nadu’s total greenhouse gas emissions has increased from 12% to 19%. Considering increasing traffic congestion in metro cities such as Chennai, Mr. Stalin emphasised the need to use public transport. He said that in the first phase, 120 electric buses have been introduced through the Metropolitan Transport Corporation. The State government has planned to introduce another 600 electric buses soon.

He said that with regard to global warming, Tamil Nadu should achieve the target of net zero before 2070, and that the State has been working extensively at both policy and action levels over the past four years. He also said the State government sought ₹24,679 crore disaster relief funds to the Centre, but it only received ₹4,136 crore.

Mr. Stalin also released a technical report on blue carbon wealth of Tamil Nadu and a report on reducing marine litter on Tamil Nadu coast under Tamil Nadu fishnet initiative. Minister for Finance Thangam Thennarasu, Chief Secretary N. Muruganandam, and Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests Supriya Sahu, among others, participated.