Puffed Rice Served In Midday Meal In Odisha School

Bolangir: A video purportedly showing students feeding on puffed rice (mudhi) instead of cooked food in Midday Meal (MDM) in a school in Odisha has gone viral on various social media platforms. The incident has been reported from Government Upper Primary School at Sansa village under Agalpur tehsil in Bolangir district.

Sources said, as no firewood was available for preparing the midday meal on August 16 and 17, the school authorities provided puffed rice and some mixture (snacks) to students.

The school authorities could not be contacted for their comments in connection with the viral video. When contacted, Agalpur Block Education Officer (BEO) Majulata Bhoi informed that appropriate steps will be taken after getting reports from the concerned Cluster Resource Centre Coordinator (CRCC).

"After receiving complaint, I have directed the CRCC to conduct a probe. The school authorities, however, informed that the firewood meant for cooking MDM was damaged in the rain and hence preparation of cooked food was affected. With no alternative, they had to serve the students puffed rice in the lunch. However, appropriate action will be taken after we receive a detailed report from the concerned official," said Bhoi.