Odisha: Class I student found locked in Balasore school

BALASORE: The headmistress of Mahabir Nodal Upper Primary School at Mathasahi in Balasore town was suspended on Thursday after a Class I student was found locked inside the school campus on Wednesday.


Sources said the student had gone to the toilet when the teachers and the peon allegedly locked the school gate and left.

The boy was rescued after locals spotted him crying near the gate of the school. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media.

As soon as the news spread, the school and mass education department directed the Balasore district education officer (DEO) to conduct a probe into the circumstances in which the boy was locked inside the school after hours.

The DEO, Pramod Sarangi, said, "A team headed by the Cluster Resource Centre Coordinator (CRCC) was asked to visit the school and conduct an inquiry."

The team led by the CRCC interrogated the school staff, including headmistress Shanti Pratima Mohapatra. Following a detailed probe, the Balasore block education officer (BEO) suspended Mohapatra for negligence.

The boy's family blamed the school. "The person who locked the gate said he was not appointed to look after the children. My son had informed the teacher before going to the toilet," said the child's father.

The headmistress said the father of the student had arrived late to pick him up. "All the teachers were aware that the student was inside the school. He had gone to the toilet but by the time he returned, no one was there. Later, he found the school gate closed and started crying," she said.

"As the school is located close to a road, we keep the students inside by locking the gate," she further said.