Irate villagers lock school gate in Panipat over mid-day meal

Mukesh Tandon

Tribune News Service

Panipat, September 20

Local residents locked the gate of government primary school at Rishpur village in the Sanoli block of Panipat district today for not providing proper mid-day meal to their children for the last 15 days.

The protesting villagers alleged that two or three teachers had been disturbing work at the school for the last six months and did not care about teaching children. Parents Malkeet, Suresh and Sunita, along with other villagers, said Santosh, a widow, had been working as cook at the school for the last 14 years and there had not been any complaint against her.

They said the teachers concerned had not been providing raw material to Santosh to prepare the mid-day meal even though she came to the school everyday. They alleged that the teachers concerned had been distributing packets of biscuits among the students instead of providing them mid-day meal.

Though the government claimed smoke-free kitchens under the Ujjwala scheme, cooks had been using wood and cow dung at the government primary and middle schools in the village.

Village sarpanch Ravinder Kumar said there had been an argument between the teachers and cook a few days ago, which affected working at the school.

He claimed that the teachers were doing their job well and were not a hindrance. He pointed out that neither school had LPG cylinders.

The government primary school had around 160 students and around 125 children studied in the government middle school.

“A three-member committee of senior women teachers has been constituted to inquire the matter,” said Block Education Officer Ramesh Kumar.

He said Santosh had accused some teachers of harassing her. Strict action would be initiated if anyone was found guilty. He added that steps would be taken to ensure that teachers performed their duties in a proper manner and children were provided quality food.