TN govt school teachers told to sign their attendance in Tamil

CHENNAI: From now onwards, teachers in the government schools across Tamil Nadu will have to put their initials in Tamil while registering their daily attendance.

Similarly, students studying in state-run schools were also asked to write their initials in Tamil in various situations, especially while signing the application forms and getting their certificates.

The latest order from the School Education Department came against the backdrop of the Tamil Development Department, which had issued a government order asking the State government staff to write their initials and signature in Tamil.

A senior official from the School Education Department told DT Next a circular was issued to all the headmasters of the government schools through chief education officers in this regard.

"Though it was also announced earlier, most the teachers and students still maintain to put their signature in English,” he said adding "in some cases, though they (especially students) know how to write their names in Tamil, they write their initials only in English".

Stating that the students especially in the middle-level schools were still unaware of the exact replacement letter from English to Tamil, the official said the teachers were also instructed to help their students over the issue. "Teachers too tend to put their initial in English while signing their attendance,” he added.