BERHAMPUR: The in-charge headmaster of a government-run upper primary school in Ganjam district has been suspended on charges of negligence in duty and financial irregularities, officials said on Sunday.
Block education officer of Aska M Mohanty said a show-cause notice was issued to in-charge headmaster of Landajuali upper primary school Suman Bartiya on March 30 after irregularities were detected. He was asked to respond within three days. As Bartiya failed to provide a satisfactory reply, the district administration placed him under suspension on Friday.
Mohanty said during an inspection conducted in the school on March 23, officials found that the student attendance register had not been maintained for the entire academic year 2025-26. Teachers claimed that the register was kept under the custody of the headmaster.
The school, which has around 350 students from pre-school (Shishu Vatika) to Class VIII, was also found to have discrepancies in financial records.
Additionally, there was a shortage of nearly 20 bags of rice meant for the mid-day meal (MDM) scheme.
Officials said the salaries of six teachers of the school and the centre resource cluster coordinator (CRCC) concerned have also been withheld.
The action was taken against the teachers for failing to report the non-maintenance of attendance records to higher authorities.
The CRCC’s salary was stopped from March for not identifying and reporting the irregularities during inspections. Further investigation into the matter is underway.