26.3.08

1966 Batch of our Schhol (Abdul Raheem)


I belong to the second batch of our school to appear for OSLC in the year 1966.
I joined the school in 1960 in 6th standard which was known then as 1st form. Mr.K.Murugaiah Pillai was the Head Master. Janab V.A.Mohamed Sadik Sahib was Correspondent,Arabic Teacher as well as Warden of the hostel. Beside them there were only two other teachers namely Janab M.Abdul Gani and Thiru Ramanujam. Only three classes were there and the school was known as Oriental Arabic Middle School.
As my mother was having treatment for her TB ailment at Calicut (Kerala) I started my journey from there along with my father and a cousin brother as a company for me in the hostel.Hearing the name of the place as Akkur, my immeture mind of that age thought that it was Agra and I had been dreaming of seeing
Taj Mahal. My dreams shattered when I landed at Mayiladuthurai, then known as Mayavaram.
A very very old customer of our business Hajee S.E.Abdul Rahman Sahib was there at Mayavaram, who is elder brother of the father of late advocate Sayeed of Nidur.. We went to his shop and proceeded to Akkur along with him(S.E.Hajiar).
The school was in one long country tiled shed. Office room and classes were all in there. One damaged
building adjescent to the kitchen was Hostel. One kitchen with three verandas used as dining halls..
Opposite to the school building stood a thatched shed, half of which was used as mosque and the remaining half was used to store bamboo poles,thatches and such sundry items.
My father was with me for two days. I felt good and wished that I could manage to live in the hostel.
When my father left, I was very much frightrened and felt lonely as if left in a jungle. For the next two days
I was crying and lied in the bed. Did not go to classes of mosque. Only after some days I accustomed
the surroundings and started to move about. Sadik Sahib and Gani Sir were very kind and encouraged
me to become normal.
After some two or three months at about noon, when we were in class rooms, it was raining heavily.
For some reason I went to the hostel and found about 6 inches of rain water in all three halls of the hostel and all our belongings were floating. Seeing this the shed used to store sundry goods was cleared immediately and we, all the inmates ,
were shifted there.
This shed was being used as hostel for the next two years. In 1961 our state experienced heavy rain
and consequently the entire state, especially Tanjore District , was flooded.Our hostel shed could not
bear the brunt and rain water splashed in to the shed through all sides. School Management sent SOS
to all known personalities for help. A five member team consisting of my father,NVTS Hajiar, SS Abdul Kader of Panrutti and others visited the school.NVTS Hajiar sent one load of gunny sheets which were
used to spread on the floor of the hostel and hung as curtain to protect the rain. SS Abdul Kader Sahib sent one load of rice. My father sent one wagon of Feroke tiles to be used on the roof of the hoastel.
But a major portion of the tiles were sold out to buy rice. A small part was used in the front of the new
office building. Later when a mosque was constructed the remaining tile were used there.
The food served in the kitchen was the worst in the entire world. For breakfast one cup of rice,having bad smell,was served and it was named as Kushka. For the remainig two times two spoonfull of rice and
one sambar alone were served. I did not have a single glass of tea or coffee in the hostel during the
entire six years.
However, the teachers were very very kindful towards students.Nevertheless, I used to write letters to
my father that I would not come to this hostel next year. But my father used to convince me that there was
no other school in the state where I could get studies with Arabic and deeniyath. Hence I continued
my studies there. to be contd.......