100km daily journey no barrier for six pupils at Kelantan's only Tamil school
KUALA KRAI: While most children are fast asleep in the early hours of the morning, six pupils of SJK(T) Ladang Pasir Gajah are on their way to school, travelling about 50km from Ladang Kerala to attend lessons.
In the early hours of the morning, six pupils from SJK(T) Ladang Pasir Gajah in Kelantan embark on a nearly 100km daily journey to attend school. The students, mostly of Indian descent, wake up as early as 5.30am to catch the school van, which arrives at their village, Ladang Kerala, around the same time. They board the van and travel for about 50km to reach their school, where they arrive around 6.30am.
The lengthy commute, while challenging, has become a routine for the pupils, who catch up on sleep during the journey. Among the six, Year Six student Kaunesh Siwaraja, the third of four siblings, and Year Six student Mafisvaran Rajkanna, the second of four siblings, have been taking the van since Year One. Year Five student Shivaani Kumaran, the second of three siblings, also joined in Year One.
The early morning journey sometimes leaves Shivaani feeling sleepy, and she has fallen asleep in the van on occasion. The headmaster, Kannan Manickam, mentioned that the school currently has 20 Indian pupils, with 14 living nearby and the remaining six hailing from Ladang Kerala. The low enrollment is attributed to the dwindling Indian population in the region, with many families relocating for employment opportunities.
Kannan has proposed the construction of a hostel to accommodate pupils from Gua Musang, Kuala Krai, and Kota Baru, hoping this initiative will boost enrollment and ensure access to Tamil education for the community.
Written by urgent.news from New Straits Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
