The Adi Dravidar Welfare Department runs a total of 1,138 schools, including 833 primary schools, 99 middle schools, 108 high schools, and 98 higher secondary schools in Tamil Nadu.
| Photo Credit: LAKSHMI NARAYANAN E
The Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Post Graduate Teachers’ Association (TNDAPGTA) has urged the State government, specifically the Social Justice Department, to create conservancy worker positions in schools run by the Adi Dravidar (AD) Welfare Department.
The 1,138 schools — including 833 primary schools, 99 middle schools, 108 high schools, and 98 higher secondary schools— run by the AD Welfare Department had a total of 77,383 students in the 2025-2026 academic year. There were 30,729 children in primary schools, 8,572 in middle schools, 10,487 in high schools and 27,595 in higher secondary schools. However, there are no positions for conservancy workers in these schools
The Association pointed out that there are 281 conservancy worker posts in 320 schools run by the Tribal Welfare Department, 32,908 posts in an equal number of schools run by the School Education Department, and 299 posts in as many schools run by the Backward and Denotified Welfare Department.
M. Senthil Kumar, State president of the Association, said the schools run by the Tribal Welfare and AD Welfare Departments come under the Social Justice Department. It allocates funds to purchase cleaning materials for toilets in the AD Welfare Department schools. The teachers pay people who live nearby to clean the toilets in these schools. The cleaning is done once or twice a week through local body workers. Sanitation is important for children attending schools and it is imperative to appoint conservancy workers in the schools run by the AD Welfare Department
To create 833 conservancy worker positions in 833 primary schools, 99 part-time positions in middle schools, 108 positions in high schools, and 98 full-time positions in higher secondary schools, it is estimated that the government’s recurring expenses will amount to ₹13.93 crore annually, Mr. Senthil Kumar added.
Mr. Senthil Kumar said that to keep the AD welfare schools clean and to ensure the health of 77,383 students in these schools, the government should create 1,138 conservancy posts.
Published – September 20, 2026 07:09 pm IST
