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The Tamil Nadu Directorate of School Education has issued a fresh circular to all district Chief Educational Officers (CEOs), enforcing strict measures to eliminate caste-based discrimination in schools. The directives are based on the report submitted by a one-man committee headed by retired High Court judge K Chandru, which recommended guidelines to avoid violence based on caste and community among college and school students.
The circular stressed that any teacher found promoting caste or communal sentiments among students would face immediate transfer after enquiry. “Such practices create tension and damage the school’s reputation. Strict action must follow without delay,” the department stated. CEOs have been instructed to conduct prompt investigations and submit detailed reports.
To ensure inclusivity, the circular directed schools to keep students’ caste identity and welfare benefits strictly confidential. Instead of publishing scholarship lists, headmasters must inform students individually, protecting their dignity and privacy.
The state also reaffirmed the roll-out of the ‘Magizh Mutram’ (Circle of joy) house system across schools in 2025–26 to encourage leadership, teamwork, and unity among students. CEOs must oversee its implementation and file compliance updates.
Magizh Mutram is a new house system in all government schools to build teamwork, leadership, and unity among students. Children from Classes 1 to 12 will be grouped into five houses — Kurinji, Mullai, Marudham, Neidhal, and Paalai — reassigned every two years. Each house will have two student leaders, chosen by lot, with captains sworn in on Children’s Day. Points will be awarded for discipline, participation, and performance, with a ‘house of the month’ announced.
Other measures in the circular include a strict ban on mobile phones inside school premises, with confiscated devices to be handed to parents, along with counselling for students. Schools must also conduct moral instruction classes using Thirukkural and maintain Student Grievance Boxes to collect complaints weekly which would be reviewed by the Student Safeguard Advisory Committee.
The Directorate has instructed all CEOs to communicate the circular to headmasters immediately and ensure its strict enforcement.
The circular comes after rising concerns over caste-related violence in educational institutions, including the 2023 assault on two Scheduled Caste students in Tirunelveli’s Nanguneri.
