The State government had constituted a commission under retired Justice K Chandru to study how caste-based violence could be prevented in schools, following the Nanguneri incident in August 2023, in which a class 12 Dalit student and his sister were brutally hacked by their schoolmates belonging to OBC category.

The exhaustive 600-page report that Justice Chandru submitted thereafter, had highlighted that Tamil Nadu’s education system is 'infested' with deep-rooted caste discrimination, challenging the State’s social justice credentials.

The commission had also made various key recommendations, including the removal of caste prefixes and suffixes in school names, which the government accepted to.

As of now, there are 2,739 government hostels across Tamil Nadu, accommodating 1,79,568 students. They are being run by Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department, besides Backward Classes and Minority Welfare Department.

Adblock test (Why?)