Poor internet connectivity making online class a challenging task for tribal hamlets in Kerala

Around 400 tribal hamlets, especially in regions in Wayanad, Idukki, Malappuram, Palakkad, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, are still struggling with internet access

Even as the second consecutive academic year in Kerala began with online classes on Tuesday, children of around 400 of the 6,000 odd tribal hamlets of the state are still struggling to get access, that too in a state that boasts of being the first digital state in the country.

Owing to the Covid situation, online classes were being conducted for school students by the Kerala government through the government agency Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE) run Victers education channel. The online classes were much popular that there were much viewership from Malyalis in various parts of the world also. Now steps for launching live classes are also being initiated by KITE.

But even a year after the launch of online classes, around 400 tribal hamlets, especially in regions in Wayanad, Idukki, Malappuram, Palakkad, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, are still struggling to have access. It is with the help of various agencies like the Scheduled Tribes Development Department (STDD), Forest officials, police and volunteers that the students of these regions are getting access to atl east recorded classes through community education centres.

According to sources in the STDD, a major hindrance in providing connectivity to the remote tribal hamlets is the difficulty in getting permission for laying cables through forest areas. The department and well as various agencies and voluntary organisations are trying to address this issue to a large extent by installing DTH, but even then many areas were not getting access. At such regions, like Edamalakkuddy in Idukki and Galazi in Attappadi, the classes are delivered by officials by playing the recorded classes in laptops at the community education centres in such hamlets.

Evaluation by various agencies on effectiveness of the online classes of last academic year found that only around 67 per cent of the entire students in the state could effectively view the online classes. Poor internet access was a major hurdle not only in the tribal hamlets, but in many high range areas. Unavailability of gadgets like television, computer or mobile as well as lack of initiative of parents were also found to be hurdles in online education.

KITE chief executive officer K Anvar Sadath said that the live classes were being planned only at 10th and twelfth standards on an experimental basis by next months. After evaluating the effectiveness and addressing the connectivity issues only full fledged live classes would be possible.