KSCPCR mulls pre-primary education in tribal language

October 23, 2014

Kasargod, Oct 23: To end the feeling of alienation among tribal children when they get initiated into the world of letters in state or national languages, the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) has decided to implement an educational package for tribal pre-primary children in their own language.

The project that will introduce the children to formal education will be implemented as a pilot project in Attappady block in Palakkad district. It will be expanded across the State later.

Titled Early Childhood Curriculum Care and Education (ECCCE), it will be implemented in anganwadis in tribal areas with the active participation of government agencies. Anganwadi teachers will use languages of different tribal ethnic groups to impart pre-primary education. The curriculum has been prepared, and it includes details of the origin, history, cultural diversity, and social life among different tribal groups.

In Attappady, 37 anganwadis have been selected for the pilot project targeting children from the Irula community.

The teachers in anganwadis will be trained with the help of tribal village elders. The project will begin in January next.

œTribal children should get education in their own language. Unlike other children, they grow up in a world of their own, a world of the jungle, animals, birds, rivers. They speak a dialect of their own, are brought up in a dissimilar culture, commission member Babu Narikuni said.

œWhen these children begin their education, at the pre-primary stage in the anganwadis near their settlements, they find themselves lost. The language used for instruction and communication here is frighteningly strange. The process flows on to the primary level too. Majority of these children drop out of school as they find it difficult to fully comprehend classroom teaching and the activities, or read the language and understand textbooks, added another member, C.U. Meena.

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Major facelift for Mangaluru's sporting heart: Mangala Stadium set for 2-month closure to upgrade synthetic track

News Network

December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Educational institutions in Mangaluru that rely on the popular Mangala Stadium for their annual sports events are bracing for an inconvenience as the city's key sporting venue is set to close its gates for a significant upgrade. The stadium is expected to be unavailable for approximately two months starting from January 15, 2026.

The closure is necessitated by a proposed overhaul of the stadium's facilities, with a special focus on upgrading the synthetic track. Pradeep Dsouza, Assistant Director of the District of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES), Dakshina Kannada, confirmed the development.

"Experts have visited the stadium, conducted a thorough inspection, and have given the go-ahead for a complete makeover," Dsouza stated. "Funds have been allocated for the project, and we are currently awaiting the final green signal from state officials to commence the work. We anticipate that the work will likely begin in the second week of January. Consequently, we have stopped renting out the stadium to colleges and other organizations in preparation for the upgrade."

The timing presents a logistical challenge for colleges, as many schools have already concluded their sports meets.

"Colleges will now be organizing their events and will need to find alternative locations to host their sports meets," Dsouza added. He suggested a few potential venues, including the Dakshina Kannada police ground, University College grounds, Panambur grounds, Swaraj Maidan in Moodbidri, and the Mangalore University sports grounds in Konaje.

However, many institutions note that finding a comparable venue will be difficult. While the DK police ground and University College grounds are closer to the city center, they do not possess the extensive facilities and infrastructure offered by Mangala Stadium.

Dr. P Dayananda Pai - P Satisha Govt First Grade College, Carstreet, is one such institution dependent on the stadium. Principal Jayakar Bhandary expressed hope for a swift completion of the work. "We expect the work to be completed at the earliest. If not, we will be forced to look for other venues to host the sports day for our students," Bhandary said, highlighting the pressing need for the city's main sporting facility.

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