Students of Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamandira, Belur, will offer free tutorial to underprivileged students from Classes III to VIII, who have not been attending school since March 2020 because of Covid.

Till Friday, around 6,000 students had registered for the free tutorials.

“We are overwhelmed with the response. The college initially kept the registration process open till May 10. But we are doing away with the registration process seeing the demand. Any number of students can attend the classes on YouTube, the links of which will be shared. They can attend the classes live or go through recorded lectures,” said Swami Ekachittananda, the principal of the college.

During registration, each candidate was asked to mention the profession of his or her father and the family’s annual income. Among those who enlisted, the annual family income of many is between Rs 1 and 1.05 lakh.

In Bengal, schools affiliated to the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education had resumed in-person classes for students of Classes IX to XII from February 12. But the classes were discontinued on April 21 following the state government’s decision to bring forward the summer vacation because of the pandemic.

But students of Classes III to VIII have been away from schools since March 2020.

Although classes are supposed to be held on digital platforms till in-person classes resume, many in the school education department admitted that academic activities had taken a hit as many teachers were unwell after attending election duty.

“Many are admitted in hospital or are quarantined in safe houses. So classes have been suspended and students are losing touch with education as a consequence,” an education department official said.

One official also questioned the ability of a section of teachers to adapt to the new normal. “There is a lack of initiative among teachers in government schools to take classes on digital platforms. Besides, teachers in government primary schools are not conversant with digital platform classes. In this context, the effort by Vidyamandira is laudable,” the official said.

Fifty undergraduate and postgraduate students of the college who have volunteered to teach will be guided by teachers of the college.

“Senior students of the college used to go to Ramakrishna Mission Jana Sikha Mandira, a unit of Saradapith, to offer free tuition to school students in the locality. Through the virtual platform we can reach out to a larger number of students,” said Swami Ekachittananda.

The monk said they wanted to help underprivileged students who had been the worst victims of Covid-induced hardships.

“They cannot afford to take private tuition to make up for the absence of in-person classes as financial constraints of their families have increased during the prolonged pandemic. RKM Vidyamandira as an institution has always tried to help the poor and the disadvantaged. So we are starting the free coaching classes,” the principal said.

The Centre had in October last year, while congratulating the college for its ranks in the National Institutional Ranking Framework, written to Vidyamandira that it was necessary to expand the role of the college outside the campus.