Bengaluru cop takes mathematics classes for migrant kids

Sub-Inspector of Police Shantappa Jadammanavar, apart from his usual police duties, has been donning the hat of a teacher. Every morning at 7 am, Shantappa takes a detour to teach roughly 30 kids at a migrant worker settlement in Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru.

He engages the students in Vedic mathematics, general knowledge, and value education for about an hour, before heading for duty at around 8.30 am.

The sub-inspector, who hails from the Ballari district, works at the Annapoorneshwari Nagar police station in the city.

"The children here (at the migrant settlement) do not have gadgets for online education. So, I decided that before my shift begins, I will come here and teach the children for an hour," Shantappa told The News Minute.

Before that, Shantappa had to convince each family in the settlement, which is highly cramped and lacks proper provisions for water, electricity, and grocery shops, to allow him to take the classes.

“I told them how important education was to get their children a better living, and they agreed,” he said, recalling that he too was a migrant labourer, after having lost his father two decades ago.

Moreover, the parents were having difficulties in charging their smartphones, hindering the remote possibility of online education.

Hence, the Karnataka government’s Vidyagama programme, which involves a virtual class for a small group of students, was also not feasible for the area.

“There is a lack of proper coordination between the teachers and children who are enrolled in government schools. Teachers call the children to the park and children do not know which park or location to go to,” he told The New Indian Express.

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In a month that Shantappa had started taking classes, his efforts got recognised by many, including Karnataka Education Minister S. Suresh Kumar, who even visited one of his classes.

"I am proud of the police officer. While police officials have made the news for the wrong reasons, this kind of example increases the pride of the police department," Suresh Kumar said.

Following the minister’s visit, many benefactors offered to buy books, bags, and stationaries for the children. As an incentive to make them complete their homework, Shanthappa offers chocolates or a geometry box to the kids.

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