Tenhipalam: Beyond the classroom, Somaraj Palakkal, a teacher at Olakara Government Lower Primary School in Peruvalloor, lives and breathes for his school and its children. From scaling coconut trees and cleaning the old school well to repairing broken tiles on the roof, he goes far beyond the call of duty. To his students, colleagues and their parents, he is the very spirit that keeps the school alive.

Whenever the school kitchen runs out of coconuts, Somaraj climbs up the trees himself using a thalappu (a looped footrest) in the old-fashioned way. The school’s well, about 15 kol deep (roughly 31 feet), is another responsibility he takes on without hesitation . He cleans out mud and weeds from this well whenever they accumulate.

The four coconut trees he planted on the campus back in 2009 now stand tall, bearing fruit for the school’s use. Somaraj joined Olakara in 2007 and the very next year he planted 100 plantains in the compound. Later, he added another 40 plants of different varieties such as Kunnan, Mysore, and Njalipoovan bananas and all of these were harvested to meet the needs of the school kitchen.

The school currently boasts a thriving farm comprising plantains and vegetables as well as a flower garden, each cared for by `Somaraj Mash,' as he is fondly known. Every evening, he stays back at school to look after the farm, while also being at the forefront whenever issues crop up in the computer lab.

Recognising his contributions, both the School PTA and the Peruvalloor Panchayat have honored him with awards. A resident of Kolappuram AR Nagar, Somaraj lives with his wife, Snigdha Shankar, a teacher at Kolappuram GHSS. The couple has two children, P Anuvind and Ashitha.