A senior official of Valluvar Education Institutions and a petrol pump in Karur city of Tamil Nadu, have put to use teachings of poet Valluvar to help citizens combat the rising petrol prices, reported The New Indian Express.
Karur Residents can avail a litre of free petrol, if their children can recite 20 couplets of Thirukkural and half a litre if the child can manage 10 verses. Thirukkural is a classic Tamil text containing 1,330 short couplets of seven words: kurals.
According to Managing Director of Valluvar Group of Companies K. Sengukuttuvan, the intention is to motivate children to learn and understand the importance of the text that is considered one of the greatest works on ethics and morality. The couplets are known for its universality and secular nature.
Moreover, the new scheme has become a great success among parents, who are enthusiastically taking their trained children to the Valluvar Agencies’ fuel station at Malaikovilur near Aravakurichi.
Even one of the participants, class 8 student and lover of Thirukkural’s writings Prithika from Malaikovilur Government Panchayat Union Middle School said that she rushed to tell her father about the scheme and win half-a-litre petrol.
Elaborating on his intention, Sengukuttuvan told the newspaper, “Thirukkural is a treasure-chest filled with knowledge. We kick-started the initiative about a month ago, on Thiruvalluvar Day [January 15] because in recent times, there has been a drastic decrease of interest among children to read and learn the couplets. This needs to change. Technology gets updated at regular intervals, but Thirukkural remains constant.”
Children studying in classes 1 to 12 qualify for the offer. Further, one child can attempt recitals multiple times but must recite different couplets each time. Children also receive a Thirukkural pen with couplets engraved on it, along with the fuel.
As of February 12, around 50 children recited and received free fuel for their parents’ vehicles. The scheme will continue until April 30, said Sengukuttuvan.
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