The Times of India          11.10.2010

The middle school in Alandur muncipality today stands as a proud testimony to what can be achieved when residents, irrespective of the rich and the poor, come together for community building. The century-old institution on Karunagiri Street, which was in a dilapidated condition has been rebuilt using Rs 1 crore collected by residents and the local body.

Labour minister T M Anbarsan, who represents Alandur and Pallavaram in the state assembly, inaugurated the school on Sunday, which is now ready to re-admit its students. Till now, they have been sharing space with 236 primary students in 10 congested classrooms of a 67-year-old government primary school.

The school, located on a 12,000-sq ft plot, now has 17 well-designed classrooms, fully equipped libraries, two science laboratories, an indoor auditorium, a computer room with 20 desktops. It also has a playground and will house 800 students from classes 1 to 8 and 20 teachers.

"The institution is the reflection of community involvement in development projects undertaken by the local body. Efforts are being taken to upgrade it to a high school. The residents' help in the effort was crucial," Alandur municipality chairman A Duraivelu told TOI.

It took nearly three years of fund-raising and more than a year of construction before the efforts bore fruit, Duraivelu added. The municipality is expected to pass a resolution on the issue of elevating it to a high school at the coming council meeting.

Though the school was elevated to the status of a middle school in 1962, no additional facilities were provided. Over the years, its condition deteriorated and the need to rebuild it was felt. Also, despite the presence of a large number of private and government aided institutions in the area, this school remained popular. Hundreds of residents, especially the poor and daily-wage labourers in Alandur, Adambakkam and other places, sent their wards here.

"Most of the residents in the municipality are either retired government officials or had held senior positions in private firms. Inputs given by them during public consultations on the project helped a lot," said councilor V Eswaraprasad. In 2002, the municipality approached the Kancheepuram district administration for approving the ` one-crore project. After a field inspection in 2006, the district administration gave its nod in January 2007. Part of the sum came from the municipality's educational funds and a substantial sum from voluntary organisations, corporate houses and the school's 20-member Parents-Teachers Association.

Some donated in cash, while others contributed desks and benches. Even daily wage labourers and small businessmen contributed sums ranging from Rs 50 to Rs 2,500. Some sponsored bricks, while others chipped in their labour without pay. This is the first of the six municipal schools in the area to be jointly re-built by residents and the local body with substantical contributions from the MLA's local area development scheme funds.