Oldest Forest school in Jawadhu Hills secures 98% in Plus Two examinations

After many years, students of Forest Government Higher Secondary School in Pdur Nadu, a small tribal village in the Jawadhu Hills of Tirupattur district, have achieved 98% pass percentage in the 2026 Plus Two exams.

Among the three forest high schools in Tamil Nadu run by the Forest Department under the Tribal Welfare Fund since 1950, the Pdur Nadu school was the highest scorer in the Class XII examinations in terms of overall pass percentage. Two other forest schools in Jamunamarathur (Tiruvannamalai) and Nellivasal (Tirupattur) secured 97% and 93% respectively.

Out of a total of 91 students, 89 students, including 38 girls, passed the exams. More than 70 per cent of them scored first-class marks in the Board exams. The school’s overall pass percentage increased this year compared to 95% (2025) and 92% (2024) in previous years’ exams.

The students come from 18 remote tribal villages in the hills. “Continuous support from teachers, forest and education authorities has helped the students study well and graduate successfully. Since there are no government colleges in the hills, our children have to go to Jolarpet or Krishnagiri for higher education,” said B. Saddaiyan, a parent.

Collector K. Sivasoundaravalli, District Forest Officer (DFO) M. Mahendran and Chief Education Officer (CEO) K. Munisubburayan appreciated the efforts of students and teachers of the school. Built in 1919, it is the oldest forest high school in Tamil Nadu, followed by Jamanamarathor and Nellivasal (Tirupattur) in Tiruvannamalai, built in 1951 and 1952 respectively.

. The school currently has a total of 463 students, 218 of whom are girls. “Students regularly attended classes punctually. Among the three forest schools, Pdur Nadu school stands first with a total score of 470. The support of parents, teachers and forest officials led by forest ranger KR Cholarajan also contributed to the success,” said school principal R. Kumaran.

Pdur Nadu village consists of 32 tribal hamlets, including Puliyur, Melur, Thagarakuppam, Perumpalli, Chinnavattam and Bellur, with over 30,000 voters. Education officials said it was no easy feat for these tribal students in Pdur Nadu, as students from remote villages in the hills walked for kilometers to reach school and buses did not proceed due to the steep terrain.

Since there were not enough teachers at the Forest school in Nellivasal, 14 kilometers away, subjects like commerce and physics were being taken jointly at the Pdur Nadu school.

Currently, apart from one forest school in Top Slip (Pollachi), there are 17 more schools in Jawadhu Hills covering Vellore, Tiruvannamalai and Tirupattur. Among them, Tiruvannamalai has the highest number of schools (11) followed by Tirupattur (7).