Andhra Pradesh

Minister showers sops on school

Photo: G.N. Rao

Tastes good: Minister for Vaidya Vidhana Parishad Vanama Venkateswara Rao having lunch with children at the tribal welfare sports school at Kinnerasani on Saturday. —

Kinnerasani (Khammam dist.): “I have never imagined a minister coming to me and talking about the needs in the school,” says Mongilala, a ninth standard student in the tribal welfare residential sports school located on the banks of the Kinnerasani.

He was the student who enjoyed spotlight during the hour-long stay of Minister for Vaidya Vidhana Parishad Vanama Venkateswar Rao in the institution.

The Minister visited his classroom, his hostel and also had lunch with him.

The children, as well as their teachers, were informed well in advance about the scheduled visit of the Minister. The hostel premises wore a clean look. The students were all found in new uniform.

Neither the wardens nor the teachers were away from the hostel in the day. Everything seemed to be going well with the Minister’s inspection of facilities in the school.

He visited the fifth standard students and interacted with Mongilala about the treatment being meted out to them.

The children made no secret of the state of affairs. “Sir, we are not being given notebooks,” complained one of them. When the minister stared at one of the teachers for an explanation, the latter said five notebooks were given at the beginning of the academic year. They were not enough. The students needed some more notebooks for writing question answers. The Minister asked the officers accompanying him to provide all the children with an extra set of five notebooks each.

He visited another classroom where the children had no benches. It had been the situation for many years now. The children were prompt enough to ask for the same.

The Minister assured them that the residential school would be provided with 500 benches before the commencement of the new academic year.

Some of the students complained to him about water problem. The Minister sanctioned a borewell on the spot.

He found the dining hall sans fans and wanted the officials to provide the school with 35 new fans.

He had a group of boys from ninth standard around him while taking lunch. Mongilala from Krishna Sagar village revealed that his father did not vote for the Minister in the last election as someone gave Rs. 50 and a bottle of liquor to him.

But the village got electricity and now every family was able to own an Indiramma house, said the boy assuring the Minister that he would prefer to vote for development once his name was included in the voters’ list.

The Minister said the residential school would be developed at a cost of Rs. 1.5 crores before June.

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