Minister Narayana gets set to realise his promise to revive his Alma mater

Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development Ponguru Narayana inspecting the now-modernized VR High School in Nellore recently. | Photo Credit: HANDOUT

The 150-year-old VR School in Nellore, which was closed down during the previous YSRCP regime, is all set to be reopened soon. It  is also expected to be a birthday gift from Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development Ponguru Narayana to his home district.

Ever since he won the Nellore City Assembly constituency in the 2024 general elections and got into the State cabinet, the Minister has been focusing on reviving his Alma mater, where he not only studied, but also worked as a teacher in the past.

Mr. Narayana, who celebrated his birthday on Sunday, reiterated his resolve to get the modernisation work in progress completed at the earliest and get the school opened from the current academic year.

Chequered history

During the British regime, Sunku Narayanaswamy Chetty, headmaster of the Free Church Mission High School in Nellore, resigned owing to differences with the management and established this Hindu Anglo Vernacular School on May 3, 1875.

After he stepped down in 1878 expressing inability, erstwhile Diwan of the Venkatagiri Rajah’s Estates Haji Mohammad Rahimtullah, shouldered the responsibility, bought a huge chunk of land and donated it to the school. However, the issue came back to the proverbial square one after Mr. Rahimtullah also stepped down in 1886.

V. Rajagopala Krishna Yachendra Bahadur, the 28th Raja of the Venkatagiri Samsthanam, provided a permanent corpus fund of ₹50,000, in recognition of which the school came to be known as Venkatagiri Rajah School.

As the school came under the management of the politically powerful AC Subba Reddy family, internal bickerings within the clan led to a legal tussle. The TDP government in 2018 appointed a Special Officer to run the affairs, but the school was completely closed down during the ensuing YSRCP regime in 2021. 

Modernisation under way

Mr. Narayana has mobilised funds to the tune of ₹15 crore from Nagarjuna Construction Company under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for modernising the school and setting up smart boards, science labs and sports infrastructure.

Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Narayana said the school would offer a ray of hope for children hailing from impoverished sections of society. He also proposes to provide breakfast, lunch and snacks to the students.

The school is all set for inauguration by the Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu soon.

Published - June 15, 2025 03:31 pm IST