Sans PET for years, students from Adi Dravidar Welfare schools play to win

CHENNAI: While everyone loves a winner, often, not many want to know the struggles behind the victory, especially when it about students from government schools, many of whom participated in the Chief Minister’s Trophy without receiving training, as the post of physical education teacher (PET) has not been filled for several years.

The trophy is a district-level sports competition for schools, colleges and working professionals that began on September 10 across Tamil Nadu. The 2024-2025 edition received enthusiastic response from students of government and private schools across various sports disciplines.

In Tiruvallur, on September 12 and 13, as many as 60 schools participated in a volleyball competition at Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) ground, where students from government schools showcased their potential. What’s surprising is that they had participated in the tournament without the guidance and support of a PET.

Firstly, students of Government Adi Dravidar Welfare (ADW) High School — Pungathur alleged that no teacher motivated and guided them in sports, as the PET post has remained vacant for four years. They rued that some teachers even discouraged them from pursuing sports.

However, due to their personal interest, students spent money from their pockets to reach the SDAT without a teacher/PET in-charge, and played the matches mostly with an empty stomach. “We were all keen on learning a sport and participating in events. But, having to do it without a PET is strenuous,” said a government ADW high school student whose parents are daily wagers. “Difficulties of learning a sport for the past four years gave us confidence to participate, but we still could not bag a second position in this competition.”

Secondly, students of the government higher secondary school in Tiruvalangadu shared that they did not have a permanent PET. A PET from a government school in Tiruttani comes twice a week and temporarily manages the team.

“When we told teachers about our participation in the CM Trophy, they discouraged us, and often requested our principal to wait for at least an hour to get permission. We all travelled 16 km to attend this competition and spent Rs 200 per head for a day for food and travel expenses,” said a student from Government Higher Secondary School, Tiruvalangadu.

“No sports equipment was provided to us. Playing hours were borrowed by other staff to complete their portions. We participated in the trial by training hard but we needed someone to boost our confidence on the ground,” added another student

When contacted, a Tiruvallur higher official said, “The PET vacant post needs to be filled quickly. When students go out for any event, at least one teacher has to be with them. I’ll look into this issue and adequate steps will be taken.” Likewise, a higher official of the ADW department assured that the issue would be resolved soon.