District Collector said there was nothing wrong if students did such jobs.
After a food department team's surprise inspection at a government primary school in Madhya Pradesh's Khandwa district revealed suspected use of animal fat for preparing mid-day meals, yet another shocker from the state has emerged with a video showing students washing their plates in drain water outside the school after having their mid-day meals.
The incident took place in Makroniya area of Sagar district. The students washing the plates is in itself a violation of rules as self-help groups tasked with providing meals to students are supposed to take care of hygiene, including washing the utensils.
Sagar District Project Coordinator HP Kurmi said, "We have ordered and an explanation has been sought from the concerned school's head master in the matter."
In Sihada village of Khandwa district, students were seen cleaning the toilet of a government school. One of the students allegedly said that the school principal had asked them to clean the toilet, promising them additional five marks in exams.
District Collector Tanvi Soundriyal said there was nothing wrong if students did such jobs. "It would have been wrong if the teacher had asked students from a particular community to clean up the toilet. There is nothing wrong if all the children are doing it," she said.
According to a recent report by World Vision India and IFMR LEAD, poor nutrition and low child survival rate has pushed Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh to the bottom of an index that tracks children's well-being through three dimensions of healthy individual development, positive relationships and protective contexts.
Low performance in the areas of child survival, nutrition, crimes against children and juvenile crimes, brought the scores down for Madhya Pradesh.