Vineetha Govindasamy@VineethaGov
Leading a CBSE school for close to 10 years has shown me just how painful it can be to deal with the government machinery.
There are days when you come very close to giving up; not because running a school is difficult, but because you're exhausted from constantly having to give. Even greed should have a ceiling. There has to be a point where they should just live & let live.
Every approval (fire, safety, kitchen, hostel, or any other clearance) seems to come with an expectation of money. Every government meeting happening in the proximity of our school, we are not requested but demanded to provide money, school vans, staff, and other resources.
An example: the FIDE Chess Olympiad in Chennai in 2022. We were instructed to provide a couple of our school vans for advertisement. Huge posters featuring our Chief Minister and the Chess Olympiad branding were put up on our SCHOOL vehicles. A month after the event, when we requested that they be removed, we were told either to leave them as they were or remove them at our own expense (which was not cheap).
What disturbed me even more was hearing government officials openly say that corruption has always existed in TN, but under the current government, they no longer have to hide it or fear getting caught. Those words came from their own mouths.
I'm neither for nor against any political party. But when you endure one blow after another for years, it's only natural to feel relieved, and even celebrate, when the wind changes direction & you finally sense the possibility of a fresh breeze.
