• As part of the Tamil Nadu government's Kalvi Suttrula initiative, 22 students from government schools embarked on a week-long educational tour to Germany, rewarding their excellence in academics and extracurricular activities.
• The sponsored tour, valued at Rs 3 crore, includes visits to educational institutions, museums like the BMW Museum, Dachau Concentration Camp, and Swarovski Crystal Worlds, offering cultural, historical, and scientific exposure.
• Launched in 2022-23, the Kalvi Suttrula program aims to recognize students excelling in studies and co-curricular activities, sending winners of state-level competitions on international educational trips, fostering holistic learning and global exposure.

As part of the Tamil Nadu government's Kalvi Suttrula (educational tour) initiative, 22 students from government schools across the state have set off on a week-long educational tour to Germany, starting from Saturday and continuing till May 28.

This international tour is a reward for their outstanding performance in academics and extracurricular activities. The students will travel with a teacher and a representative from the School Education Department to visit a number of prominent places in Munich.

Their tour will involve city tours, university and educational institution visits, and other institutions in the capital city of Bavaria.

The group will also tour famous attractions like the BMW Museum, Dachau Concentration Camp, and the Deutsches Museum and get exposed to both Germany's industrial ingenuity and its history.

Besides, the tour takes the students to Swarovski Crystal Worlds and the Hungerburg Funicular for an experience of culture, scientific as well as engineering wonders.

The tour is completely sponsored by the Tamil Nadu government at a cost of Rs 3 crore as part of its initiatives towards holistic learning of the students belonging to economically weaker sections of society.

Kalvi Suttrula scheme, initiated in 2022-23, was announced by State School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi to identify and reward students achieving not only in studies but also in co-curricular activities like fine arts, reading of books, science clubs, children's cinema and games.

Under this program, students of government middle, high and higher secondary schools who are winners in school, block, district and state level competitions are chosen for foreign study tours.

As per statistics with the State School Education Department, 323 students so far have availed themselves of the program. Previous tours have involved students visiting nations such as the UAE, Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

In one case, 25 quiz and rainbow club students each were sent to South Korea, 24 children's film club members visited South Korea, 25 literary club students went to Singapore, 21 members of the art club went to Malaysia, and 22 sports club members visited Japan.

This path-breaking program seeks to open up the world to students and encourage them through exposure abroad, and foster inclusive educational opportunities in Tamil Nadu.