CHENNAI: Mayor R Priya on Tuesday kicked off the Educational Tour programme for students of classes 4 and 5 in Corporation schools for this academic year by flagging off the buses at Ripon Building. A similar programme was successfully conducted for students in the previous academic year (2024-25).

This initiative, announced in the Mayor’s budget speech, aims to provide an experiential learning opportunity for young students.

Interacting with the children before their departure, Priya advised them to travel safely and also actively learn about the historical and cultural significance of the places they visit. She emphasised that the tours were designed to enhance their educational and general knowledge.

In this academic year, 5,335 students from classes 4 and 5 across 130 Corporation schools will be taken on educational tours. Each student will visit any four locations from a curated list of prominent sites in and around Chennai such as Birla Planetarium, Aavin Milk Dairy, Vandalur Zoological Park, Periyar Science Park, ICF Museum, Police Museum, Connemara Library, Anna Centenary Library, Egmore Museum, Valluvar Kottam, Marina Beach – Anna Memorial and Kalaignar Memorial.

The programme is planned across all 15 zones of the city. A fleet of 97 buses, each carrying an average of 55 students, will operate every weekday from Monday to Friday to facilitate the tours.

Around 300 students from five Corporation schools in Gopalapuram, KC Garden, Rangasamy, MH Road, and Ekangipuram were taken to various sites, including Birla Planetarium, Periyar Science Park, Valluvar Kottam, Kalaignar Memorial, Police Museum, and Connemara Library, in six buses on the first day.