As many as 18 children of the Kembanur tribal settlement in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) in Erode district have not attended their schools for the past two months, due to the absence of transport.
The settlement is located about 12 km from the Athani–Sathyamangalam Road and falls under the Kongarpalayam panchayat in the T.N. Palayam panchayat union of the Gobichettipalayam taluk.
In the early 2000s, over 50 families of the village, all belonging to the Urali community, left their settlement for Vinoba Nagar, located outside the forest area, in search of jobs and better education opportunities. Only three residents, M. Srirangan, now 74, his wife Lakshmi and her mother Madhammal, aged 94, had living there for about 20 years.
