“No proper meal for nearly two months”: Parents raise alarm over Assam's Cachar school

Parents and local residents have alleged that around 150 students at Lailapur Forest Village LP School in Assam’s Cachar district have been deprived of regular mid-day meals for nearly two months.

The school is located in Lailapur, along the Assam-Mizoram border.

Parents have levelled allegations of irregularities in the distribution of mid-day meal supplies against headmaster Faizur Rahman, claiming that students have not been receiving meals as prescribed under government norms.

According to the parents, biscuits or khichdi are provided occasionally, but a regular and complete mid-day meal has allegedly not been served to the students for nearly two months.

The parents have also raised questions over the functioning of the school, alleging that the headmaster attends the school according to his convenience and sometimes declares holidays without following the prescribed schedule.

They claimed that the situation has affected the academic environment and regular teaching at the school.

The parents further alleged that when they approached the headmaster seeking clarification over the mid-day meal supplies, they were allegedly subjected to misbehaviour and threats.

In another allegation, the parents claimed that a water pump belonging to the school was taken by the headmaster and kept at his residence.

Following the allegations, parents and local residents have sought the immediate intervention of the Cachar district administration and the Education Department.

They have demanded an impartial inquiry into the mid-day meal arrangements, the headmaster’s attendance and the other allegations concerning the school.

The parents have also demanded strict action against the headmaster if the allegations are established following an investigation.