Odisha school headmaster among four arrested for diverting rice meant for mid-day meal to mill

Berhampur (Odisha): Headmaster of a government-run school and a rice mill owner were among four persons arrested for alleged diversion of rice meant for mid-day meal for students in Ganjam district to the rice mill, police said on Saturday.

The headmaster of Upendra Bhanja Upper Primary School at Golia near Buguda was also suspended on Friday for allegedly diverting the rice to the rice mill, police said.

Representational image. Reuters

Apart from the headmaster and rice mill owner, two labourers were also arrested on Thursday for allegedly diverting around three quintals of mid-day meal rice, said inspector in-charge of Buguda police station, Ramchandra Biswal.

The labourers transported the rice in six bags from the school to the rice mill on 30 October. All the bags containing the diverted mid-day meal rice were seized from the mill, Biswal said.

"We suspended the headmaster after getting the report from the block education officer(BEO)," said District Education Officer (DEO), Sanatan Panda.

Diversion of the mid-day meal rice came to fore following an inquiry conducted by a three-member team of officers on the direction of the BEO, Buguda. The inquiry was conducted following allegation by local people after they noticed bags of rice being transported in the night to the rice mill, officials said.

The headmaster failed to produce the records of the rice in the stock and sufficient reasons for diverting the rice to the mill, said.

The BEO lodged an FIR after getting the inquiry report.