A surprise inspection at Jalinimata High School in Sanmasigam under Nabarangpur block in Odisha took an unusual turn on Wednesday afternoon when the District Education Officer (DEO) personally picked up a broom to clean parts of the school campus after finding the premises in an unclean state.

According to reports, DEO Chhatrapati Sahu arrived at the school and found cobwebs, dust and garbage across the campus. The peon and the ‘headteacher’ present remained silent as the DEO swept sections of the school premises, a moment that drew attention from onlookers. Teachers and non-teaching staff reportedly took no action despite noticing the DEO’s visible displeasure.

During his inspection, the DEO also carried out a check of the mid-day meal arrangements and was reportedly dissatisfied with the irregularities found there as well.

DEO Explains His Decision

Nabarangpur DEO Chhatrapati Sahu said, "I went on a surprise inspection to Jalnimata High School in Sanmasigam. I reached there around 12:30 pm and found the environment dirty and unclean with garbage and cobwebs everywhere. Upon inquiring I found that the school has three peons while two of them work as night watchman-cum-sweeper at the high school. After seeing the condition of the school, I was very disheartened and started sweeping myself."

He further said, "I took the initiative to demonstrate that people are allotted for this work but still not doing it, and the DEO had to take up the cleaning. I hope this step creates awareness so that they perform their designated duties."

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Staff Response to The DEO’s Move

Acting Headmaster Sanjay Kumar Das reportedly did not respond to queries from the media and avoided answering questions regarding the condition of the school and the responsibilities of the staff.