Punjab: Mid-day meal ration stolen from government school in Patiala

Bharat Khanna | TNN | May 1, 2020, 17:04 IST

Representative image.

PATIALA: The police have booked two persons for having allegedly stolen mid-day meal ration and two cylinders from the government school in Bahman village of Samana division in Patiala. However, the accused did not even make any attempt to steal away the costlier computers lying in the computer lab, said police.
The accused have been identified as residents of Bahmna village in Samana division where the theft had taken place in the village school. The police said that they belong to poor families and had made theft during the lockdown period. The police added that both the accused were booked at Sadar Samana police station and one of them was arrested while hunt to nab other accused was on.
The case has been registered on the complaint of Amanpreet Kaur of Samana who is also posted as Head-Master in the school. In her complaint to the police, she revealed that around 50 kg Rice, 40 kg wheat, 12 kg pulses, 9 kg horse grams and two cylinders were stolen from the kitchen of the school.
Amanpreet Kaur revealed that there are ten teachers and a clerk besides 201 students in the school comprising primary and higher section. She claimed that earlier on April 9 and 14 also some amount of ration was stolen and a complaint was submitted to the police while again on April 28 locks were found to be broken to steal away the ration meant for mid-day meal.
Investigating officer in the case, ASI Balwinder Kumar, said, "The accused committed theft in the school and took away the ration and two cylinders however they did not even attempt to steal away the computers kept in the lab. They broke only lock of the kitchen to take away wheat, rice etc. We have nabbed one of the accused and hunt for another was on. We are investigating if these accused are booked in any case in the past however so far nothing has come to fore and probably it is the first case registered against them."
Hardeep Singh, village Sarpanch said that both accused were working as driver and helpers but due to lockdown, their jobs were affected. He said both of them are also learned to be drug addicts.
A few days ago Bhadson police in Patiala booked two accused for stealing away two gas cylinders from mid-day meal kitchen of government High School in Bhadi Panaicha village while Ghanaur police booked unidentified accused of stealing LED from a government school.
On April 27 police nabbed four homeless persons for stealing goods and coins from various shops but they failed to take away collected items from a Karyana shop after listening to a police siren.
On April 21, four villagers of Kauli village were booked for stealing away items of daily need including sugar, wheat, ghee, mustard oil, tea, surf, soaps and some cash from a Karyana shop in their village.
On March 26, some labourers and workers in Kaidupur village, Lubana, and Kansuha villages of Nabha division in Patiala district banged empty plates in a protest against the government after they claimed to have left with no food at all.
On March 28, a number of poor and hungry residents of Nabha town pelted stones on Punjab Cabinet Minister and Nabha legislator Sadhu Singh Dharamsot vehicle and his cavalcade for allegedly making discrimination while distributing the ration among them. The video of the stone-pelting incident had then gone viral over social media. Three days later the police registered a case against 55 persons including six identified for pelting stones on the minister and his cavalcade.