Adopting an innovative approach, the State Government run Kerala State Road Transport Corporation has decided to convert their discarded and scrap buses into much-need classrooms.

The concept known as Padanavandi has rolled in Thiruvananthapuram’s teachers’ training institute, Manakkad, the first of these converted buses. The low-floor bus has been refurbished as a classroom for Rs.3 lakhs.

It was inaugurated this week by Antony Rau, the State Transport Minister and V. Sivankutty, the General Education Minister. This version of the Padanavandi has racks for storing books, an air-conditioner and a smart television among other facilities.

Another low-floor bus is being converted with two floors to allow 40 students to be seated at a given time. One bus has been handed over to a Palakkad-based school for turning it into Padanavandi.

The Padanavandi will be used as a reading room while one session of every class in a day will be held inside it. Plans afoot to have more such converted buses based on the requirement of the schools.

A number of KSRTC buses lying idle during the Covid-19 pandemic waves and the lockdowns had got damaged and become beyond repair. The Government decided to convert them instead of selling them in the scrap.

Antony informed the media that a number of other States have made enquiries about this scheme.