Chennai, Nov 14 (IANS) DMK President, M.K. Stalin, on Saturday urged society to help children develop their distinctive talents and pursue their aspirations, saying that ensuring a happy childhood was the first step towards building a better future for them.
Extending Children’s Day greetings in a post on X, Stalin highlighted welfare and educational initiatives introduced during successive DMK administrations, describing them as efforts to strengthen children’s health, learning, scientific curiosity and individual abilities.
He also encouraged children to explore a world beyond digital screens, expressing the hope that their lives would expand through knowledge and discovery.
“The first step towards creating a better future for children is ensuring that they have a happy present,” Stalin said, placing their immediate well-being at the centre of his message.
Recalling the party’s record in government, he referred to vaccination programmes, the inclusion of eggs in nutritious meal schemes and free bus travel for students.
These measures, he said, formed part of the DMK’s continuing commitment to children’s welfare and access to education.
Stalin said the initiatives were subsequently expanded under the Dravidian Model administration through programmes addressing nutrition, schooling, healthcare and the development of children’s interests and capabilities.
Among the schemes he listed were initiatives to ensure adequate nutrition, Anbu Karangal, the Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme, Illam Thedi Kalvi, Ennum Ezhuthum and Vaanavil Mandram.
The programmes featured in his message covered several aspects of childhood, from food and foundational learning to opportunities for scientific exploration.
He presented them as complementary efforts aimed at helping children grow and learn. He also cited the cervical cancer vaccination programme for adolescent girls among the healthcare measures introduced, placing preventive health alongside nutrition and education in the broader welfare agenda outlined in his greeting.
Stalin appealed for responsible support to help children identify and nurture their unique strengths. His message emphasised enabling them to follow the paths they wished to pursue, with encouragement for their individual talents and ambitions.
The appeal linked children’s future prospects with the care, opportunities and freedom to learn available to them in the present.
Concluding his message, Stalin wished that children’s world would grow “beyond the glow of screens into the light of knowledge” and extended his greetings on Children’s Day, celebrated across India on November 14 every year, with an appeal to support their dreams.
–IANS
aal/rad