BHADRAK : The district administration seized 599 bags of rice meant for supply under mid-day meal scheme in the last two days in Dhamnagar under Dhamnagar police limits. While 319 bags were seized on Tuesday, 280 bags were seized on Monday from a house and a rice meal respectively.The district has 2,500 schools including Upper Primary, UGME and Primary where mid-day meal has been introduced. Nearly 40 per cent schools do not have infrastructure facilities for smooth operation of the scheme. While one would still continue to provide mid-day meal, absence of staff, irregular supply of food material and gross smuggling of rice has worsened things.
Due to lack of proper management along with inadequate infrastructure, the rice meant for MDM has been sold in black market, said Surendra Mallick, former district president of Teachers’ Association. Only in Chandabali block, of 352 schools 150 have no kitchen. Similarly, 22 per cent schools on other six blocks have not yet constructed kitchen room and it’s only due to lack of coordination between management committee of the schools and the authority concerned in the district, Mallick said. District Collector Gyanaranjan Das assured that the team would check smuggling of rice and steps will be taken for smooth operation of the scheme.