5.94 lakh students to be enrolled in libraries - The Hindu

Students of ICC Middle School in the city read books given from library on Tuesday. Photo: S.Siva.Saravanan 

A project to enrol over 5.94 lakh school students studying Standards I to VIII in libraries was launched here on Tuesday to commemorate World Book Day.

It is a joint initiative of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and the Directorate of Elementary Education.

Students would be encouraged to go to library once a week during school hours, said Coimbatore Additional Chief Education Officer (SSA) R. Thiruvalarselvi. All the students, teachers, block resource teachers, and other teaching staff of the 1,142 Government and aided schools here would be enrolled in a library nearer to respective schools.

The State Government, she said, has opened libraries in all the villages in the district.K.S. Shanmugam, City Assistant Elementary Education Officer, said students of schools located in the city limits would be enrolled in the Government District Central Library at R.S. Puram or its branches at Raja Street, Puliakulam, and Gandhipuram. Students studying Standards VI to VII would be enrolled by April.

Students in other standards would be enrolled by June, he added. Ms. Thiruvalarselvi said age-appropriate books would be given to students undergoing elementary education.

The scheme would cover a total of 3.66 lakh students in primary education (Standards I to V) and 2.27 lakh students in secondary education (Standards VI to VIII). The Coimbatore SSA comprises 22 blocks of which 15 cover Coimbatore district and the rest are from Tirupur.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) celebrates April 23 as World Book Day to promote reading habit.