Over a year after receiving free bicycles from the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, many Class 11 students have sold them off due to alleged poor quality. Parents in need of money have also been found selling the bicycles, as reported by The New Indian Express (TNIE).
Shops on Selvapuram and Chetty Street in Coimbatore were found displaying numerous government-issued bicycles for resale; these included both boys’ and girls’ models. The male model bicycles were priced between ₹2,000 and ₹2,300, while the female models ranged from ₹1,800 to ₹2,000.
A shop owner, preferring to remain anonymous, told TNIE that the bicycles were of substandard quality, leading students to sell them instead of paying for repairs. “Many bicycles had faulty brakes, misshapen wheel rims, torn tubes, and improperly fitted seat covers. The accessories were of poor quality. Students would need to spend ₹500 to ₹700 on repairs to make them safe to ride,” he explained.
Instead of repairing the bicycles, many students opted to sell them for ₹800 to ₹ 1,000. The shop owner suggested that if the government had provided better quality bicycles, fewer students would have sold them.
An employee at another shop mentioned to TNIE, “We buy these bicycles from students for a maximum of Rs 900 since we need to refit them, change tire tubes, and make other repairs. We then sell them for Rs 1,800 to Rs 2,300 depending on their condition.” He added that some fathers struggling with alcohol addiction had sold their daughters’ bicycles to purchase liquor.
A Class 12 student at Corporation Higher Secondary School in Selvapuram shared his experience with TNIE. “I received a bicycle in February last year when I was in Class 11, but it was of substandard quality. The repair costs were too high, so I sold it for Rs 900 and used the money as pocket money,” he said.
The headmaster of a government higher secondary school emphasized that the objective of the cost-free bicycle scheme is to encourage regular school attendance, especially for students from rural areas. However, the poor quality of the bicycles has led many students to sell them instead. “Shop owners are benefiting from this situation, and it should be stopped immediately. In our school, most students come by walking or by bus,” he noted.
As reported in TNIE, R Ramkumar, President of the Tamil Nadu Teachers and School Protection Association, highlighted that this issue is prevalent across the state. He urged the school education department to ensure that students receive good-quality bicycles.
A senior official in the school education department acknowledged the problem, stated that selling the bicycles is illegal, and assured that they would look into this matter immediately.
Tamil Nadu government school students selling off free bicycles over poor quality https://t.co/NRPaaPiYOp pic.twitter.com/N8wUIr1cml
— Thinakaran Rajamani (@thinak_) June 29, 2024
(with inputs from TNIE)
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