Justice Chandru Committee recommends prohibition of wristbands, forehead markings in students; removal of caste appellations in school names

The committee, constituted in the wake of a brutal assault on siblings belonging to the Scheduled Caste community by their classmates in Tirunelveli district last year, also made recommendations on seating arrangements, and a separate legislation to enforce a policy of social inclusion

Justice Chandru submitted his report to Chief Minister M. K. Stalin at the Secretariat in Chennai on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in the presence of School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi, Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena and others | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The one-man committee headed by retired Madras High Court judge Justice K. Chandru, has recommended that the Tamil Nadu government prohibit students in schools from wearing coloured wristbands, rings, or forehead marks that may indicate their caste. It also recommended the removal of caste appellations in the names of schools.

Mr. Chandru submitted his report to Chief Minister M. K. Stalin at the Secretariat in Chennai on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, in the presence of School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi, Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena and others. The Hindu accessed the copy of the report.

Justice Chandru’s committee was constituted in the wake of an incident at Nanguneri in Tirunelveli district in August 2023, in which two school children belonging to the Scheduled Castes were brutally assaulted by a group of students from an intermediate caste.

The report said, “They [students] must also refrain from coming to school on bicycles painted with reference to their caste or exhibiting any caste-related sentiments. Failure to comply with these rules must result in appropriate action being taken, in addition to advising their parents or guardians.”

While the words ‘Kallar Reclamation’ and ‘Adi Dravidar Welfare’ should be removed from State-run schools, in the case of existing private schools, the School Education Department should request these schools to give up caste appellations, the report recommended. “If they fail to comply, appropriate legal steps should be considered, including legislative changes to serve the larger public interest,” the report said.

The students’ attendance register should not contain any column or details relating to their caste. “At no point can the class teacher call out students by either directly or indirectly referring to their caste, nor make any derogatory remarks about the student’s caste or the so-called character attributed to the caste”.

The State government must take steps to amend the existing Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975, and insert a provision that a society intending to start an educational institution shall not include any caste appellations in their institution’s name, it said.

Seating arrangement

The seating arrangements of students in every classroom in all schools and colleges should be strictly based on alphabetical order (of their names), the panel recommended.

While the report said the State government and the School Education Department were “justified” in prohibiting the use of mobile phones by school students, the panel said it was crucial to strictly enforce banning the use of mobile phones by students on school campuses.

This order [prohibition of mobile phones] should be applied not only to students of schools under the State Board but also to those in schools affiliated with the CBSE and other boards, such as ICSE, ensuring a consistent approach across all educational institutions,” the report said.

Legislation for social inclusion, eradication of caste discrimination

The committee also recommended that the Tamil Nadu government enact a separate legislation governing all students from schools to higher educational institutions, to enforce a policy of social inclusion and eradicate caste discrimination.

“This legislation should impose duties and responsibilities on students, teaching and non teaching staff, as well as the management of such institutions and prescribe mechanisms for supervision, control, and sanctions for non compliance with these directives”, it said.

The panel also recommended enhancing local bodies’ control over primary education. Recommending that the current limited role granted to local bodies in the school education system be expanded to full control over primary education, it said that block-level administrations (panchayat unions) must have full control over schools, including appointing, posting, and removing staff.

“The laying down of guidelines relating to curriculum and standards and conducting board exams shall be managed by the Directorate of School Education and the State government. The government should formulate new legislation to grant true autonomous powers to local bodies, making education more people oriented by amending the existing Tamil Nadu Panchayat Act of 1994,” it said.

The recommendations of the report can be accessed in The Hindu portal at: https://newsth.live/Chandrucommission.