Post News Network
Kankadahada, May 23: In what could be considered a mockery of education system, officials of this block in Dhenkanal district have engaged schoolchildren instead of labourers to process kendu leaves.
The Keonjhar Kendu leaf division has planned to procure leaves worth about Rs 1.5 crore this fiscal. There are 120 kendu leaf depots in this block while Mahabirod and Kamakhyanagar ranges comes under Keonjhar Kendu leaf division. The division grants lakhs of rupees to dry and preserve the leaves after draining water from them.
A daily worker charges minimum of Rs 200 a day to execute these works. However, sources said, rangers, foresters, checkers in depots and accountants manage to make Rs 180 per person by giving the tasks to schoolchildren as the children are paid only Rs 20 per head for their his half-day’s work.
Sumati Padhan (Class IX), Rukmini Padhan (Class-VII), Purnachandra Padhan (Class VI), Akash Padhan (Class V) were seen engaged in Jhanjiriberena depot while Lambodar Padhan, Papu Nayak, Surendra Singh and Goutam Naik were found working in Rodanga depot of Kerjoli panchayat under Kamakhyanagar range Saturday.
All these children are students of a local school, sources said. As they belong to poor families, they have to work in the depot to buy their school books and notes, children said.
Ranger Ajay Mohanty and forester Chandramani Juanga, who are in charge of Rodanga depot said, however, said the job of drying and storing kendu leaves were awarded to contractors not children.
“Engagement of school students in the work has come to our knowledge. We shall look into it on a priority basis”, Mohanty said.
While the day’s temperature soars up to 42 degree Celsius in Kankadahada, the children have to work up to mid-day under such condition, locals said and sought intervention of top officials in the matter.
